A Poison Tree
by Araminta Melliflua
Summary: WIP...This tells the story of Rowena Ravenclaw and her star-crossed relationship with Salazar Slytherin, as well as her frienships with the other founders.
1. Prologue

Disclaimer--Besides a few characters of my own invention, I am weaving a tale with J.K.Rowling's fantastic characters, and so I of course claim no ownership of any of them, and their consequential adventures are of my making, so do not represent the views of the author or the publisher. [/very long sentence] A Poison Tree 

**~*Prologue*~ ******

_"...Under the ancient rock the warrior ventured alone, no Fitela fighting beside him, but still it befell that his firm steel pierced the worm, the point stood fast in the wall, the dragon had died the death!"  the boy exclaimed, his green eyes flashing an excited intensity as always when he told her stories.___

_            "What happened then, Salazar?!"  the much younger girl asked, eager and smiling.___

_            "You know, Rowena, for I've told the story often enough," he replied, shaking the thick, dark hair from his face.___

_            "Sigemund found the treasure!" she told him, clapping her little hands.___

_            "Yes, the Hero's daring had won the treasure to have and to hold as his heart might wish.  Then the Waesling loaded his sea-boat, laid in the breast of the ship the wondrous and shining treasure, and watched the worm dissolve in the heat.  Sigemund was the strongest of men in his deeds and daring, warrior's shield and defender, and most famous in days of old..."_

Rowena sighed as she sat high in the oak tree, upon a thick brown limb, shaded from the warm summer sun, recalling the days past when her friend Salazar would sit there with her, telling fantastic tales.  She was feeling particularly bitter, having only moments before watched Salazar Apparate along the edge of the castle grounds at Cnoc Liath in the Glen and proceed up the hill to the castle without so much as a wave to her.  At first, she figured it was because she was nestled in the treetops of the copse near the Loch, but upon further thought she concluded he would _know _she would be milling about there on a summer's day in _their _tree.

She crossed her arms and leaned against the coarse, thick trunk of the great tree.

He used to sit here with her and tell her wonderful stories of heroes and their adventures--of Odysseus, Beowulf, Sigemund, and Gilgamesh--yet now it was as though Rowena did not exist.

"Rowena," her father had said to her one day, following her disgruntled complaint.  "Salazar is sixteen; he is a young man now, and does not have time to while away the hours with a little girl, telling her stories and playing games."

Her fair, lightly freckled face presently frowned as she remembered her father's words.  To add insult to injury, Salazar had not even entered the wing near the library where his teacher, her father, was--he had gone to visit her mother yet again.  

Rowena saw an ant, out of line and lost from the others scurrying along the lichen spotted trunk.  In her jealousy, she squashed it.  Nathaira Ravenclaw was not worthy of Salazar Slytherin's company, as far as her daughter Rowena was concerned.  Extremely beautiful, the fair Lady Ravenclaw was a cruel and unfair mother, neglectful of her daughter, and on the occasions when she did see her, she said only hurtful things.  For Rowena to see the one person she loved most of all, next to her father, even acknowledging her mother's existence was too much to bear.  Her face flushed red with her cross feelings about Salazar.

"Fairy folkes are in old oakes!" a voice called from below Rowena, startling her from her anger.  A red headed boy of around eleven stood under the oak tree, looking up at her.

"I'm not scared of fairies, Kay.  I've read all about them," she answered smartly.

"Oh, really?" Kay returned, a tone of mischief blatantly present.  The boy, son of one of the few wizard servants in the castle, had a knack for leading Rowena into trouble.  They were the same age, and sometimes played together, but it usually led to Rowena getting punished.

"The fields on the other side of Lairig Mor are blooming with Deadmen's Bells..."

"Bluebells," she corrected.  "And I'm not scared of fairy enchantments."

"Well, I heard if you hear them ring, it means you'll die.  I bet you would be too scared to go and see."

Rowena almost took the dare, but she remembered then that she was angry.  With ease that came from repeated practice, she quickly scrambled down the massive trunk of the tree.

"Not right now, Kay," she said, taking off at a run.  She bounded over the grassy knoll between the copse and the castle, making her way to the private entrance of the western wing, where her father spent most of his time.  Through cool corridors she ran until she found her father absorbed in study, bent over a table in the library.  The library was Rowena's favorite place to be.  It was not a well-ordered place, with books and scrolls squashed into tall shelves, scattered around on various tables and even piled in haphazard heaps around the floor.  As usual, Lord Ravenclaw sat, scribbling away on the writing desk perched atop a large table covered with  an ornately decorated tapestry he was proud to say had graced the Emperor Justinian's study wall.  His thick, red robe fell like drapery around him as he leaned his head on one hand and turned to glare at Rowena.  Stern and thoughtful, his eyes told her she had disrupted him, as they looked out from under his white eyebrows and crinkled forehead.  Her father was old, much older than her mother, and he was nearly bald, with a long white mustache and beard.  He reminded her very much of the bust of Sophocles that rested on a nearby shelf, crammed in between books and scrolls on Charms.

"Sorry, Father," she said, changing her dashing to tiptoeing.  "But..."

"Not now."

"But..."

He turned back to his writing.

Rowena stomped her foot.  "Salazar ignores me!  What is wrong with him lately?  He's not been himself!" she demanded.

"Why must you be such a petulant girl, Rowena?" Lord Ravenclaw asked, peering down at his daughter who scowled underneath a head of straw-yellow hair, messy and windblown from outdoor activities.  His face softened and he smiled, letting Rowena know that as trying as she could be, he prized her over any knowledge, and loved her deeply.  "I have tried to explain it to you.  Why don't you ask him  yourself when he comes for his lesson today?"

"He's already here," said Rowena, sullenly.  Just thinking about him ignoring her to visit her mother made the jealousy rise up again, and she crossed her arms.

She saw then that her father did not look pleased, either.  Rowena thought she understood--she and her father were a family separate from the Lady Ravenclaw, and Salazar Slytherin was a part of that family as a son and brother.  The way Rowena saw it, he was fraternizing with the enemy.

Lord Ravenclaw's face looked very gray, and though Rowena longed for anger, it was more a terrible sadness.

"Go out and play," he instructed, turning away from her.  "Get out of the castle for a while, Rowena."

"If I do, I may get in trouble," she replied.  "Kay wants to go over Lairig Mor to see if we hear the Deadmen's Bells tinkling in the fields."

"Bluebells," her father laughed.  He reached for a leather-bound book and handed it to her.  "Take my field journal.  I could use some more sketches of bluebells.  Do you have your wand?"

Rowena nodded.

"Well, then you should be prepared.  Sometimes bluebell fields can be very enchanted.  Run along, now."

Rowena ran up to her father and kissed his cheek.  It was a special occasion indeed, that he had entrusted her with his field journal.  In both of their eyes, that tattered book was quite sacred.

He smiled at her and touched her little nose, which bore the most of her faint freckles.

"Enjoy the summer day, Rowena.  Keep Kay on his toes."

"Goodbye, Father," she replied and hurried off, eager to play the part of the scholar on special assignment by Lord Ravenclaw himself.

She found Kay loitering about by the barn, bothering the horses and the stable boy.

"Kay!" she called to the red headed boy. 

"What?" he asked, somewhat upset that she had abandoned him.

"Don't you want to go over Lairig Mor?  Don't you want to see the bluebells?"  Rowena questioned, superior and brave.  

Kay suddenly looked very sheepish.  "Well...yes...I suppose..."

"Come on then!" she called, sprinting off up the hill to the great brown pass that rose from the green Glen.

The sun was high in the sky when the two children set off for the mysterious enchanted fields, but it was nearing mid-afternoon by the time they had cleared the pass.  Climbing was nothing to their fun seeking selves, and time seemed to pass slowly as they discussed many stories and elements of fairy magic as they climbed and climbed leisurely, stopping to jostle one another and play.  When they reached the top of the pass however, Rowena took in a deep breath.  The hillside below, leading to the next glen, was washed in blue.  A sea of bluebells swayed in the summer sunlight, not unlike the blue Loch when it was ruffled by the wind.  Rowena could not recall seeing so many flowers before, especially not of the same color.  As if someone had taken a giant paint brush soaked in blue color and shook it over the hillside, massive amounts of blue flecks dotted the verdant green grass of the meadows.  Like a winding black snake, a rocky river curved through the middle of the glen and it's cool water looked just as alluring as the sea of blue flowers.

Rowena turned and smiled at Kay with a look of fierce competition, as she took off down the rocky, steep incline.

"Oh, not this time, Rowena!" he shouted, fast on her heels as they raced down to the field.

Rowena pressed on, slipping, sliding, laughing, all the way down until she tore into the field, her long dress getting caught among the leaves of tall grass and flowers.

"No...fair..." Kay heaved.  "You...had...a head...start..."

Rowena laughed and flicked her wild flaxen hair from her face, dropping down into the sea of bluebells.  The journal, which she had clutched ceremoniously, was dropped into her lap as she took a piece of charcoal from the inside pocket of the leather binding.

"What are you doing, Rowena?" asked Kay.

"Father...Lord Ravenclaw asked me to sketch some bluebells," she explained importantly.

Kay nodded and laid back in the grass, plucking a dry piece and placing it between his front teeth.

"That cloud looks like a dragon...Norwegian Ridgeback..." he muttered, as Rowena began her sketching in her father's field journal.  "Anything else in them pages besides flowers?"

"Plenty," she said, flipping through the pages.  "See, he's seen the Unseelie Court before.  Look, here's the Fachan."

Kay took a quick glimpse at the sketch of the frightening fairy creature.  His face went white.  "Those ain't around here."

Rowena smiled devilishly.  "Of course they are, Kay!"

She delighted in seeing Kay's changed demeanor.  He was always trying to frighten her, and now she had finally succeeded in terrorizing him.  After glancing around nervously for signs of the Fachan, Kay reclined back in the flowers, chewing on his piece of yellow grass.

"Do you suppose we'll hear the bells ring?" he wondered aloud.

"Perhaps," Rowena answered, biting her lower lip as she carefully moved the charcoal across the coarse parchment paper in the journal.

For a long time, Kay was quiet as Rowena sketched an individual bluebell and a panorama of the hillside.  Butterflies and small fairies fluttered among the blue and green, as the sun moved across the sky, ever filling with clouds.

"You don't suppose it might rain?" Kay inquired, when Rowena paused in her drawing.

Some darker clouds were approaching on the horizon, no doubt coming from the sea.

"We'll be back before then," she said in her usual know-it-all fashion.

"That's bad luck, that is," Kay said darkly, screwing up his eyes to scan the edge of their world.  "Storm clouds and Deadmen's Bells."

"The go home, little scared boy!" she teased.

Kay shut up and laid back down, chewing more fervently on his grass in his nervousness.

A little fairy with flowing brown hair and dainty blue skin lighted on a flower in front of Rowena, smiling from under her little cap made of a springy bluebell.

"Hello," Rowena spoke softly.  "May I sketch you?"

The fairy flitted around for a few moments, caught up fiercely in the attention, but as fairies are wont to do, quickly became interested in something else and sped off with a vibrant beating of wings.

Rowena hastily began to sketch, excited to show her father such a wonderful drawing of a bluebell fairy.  But as she continued, the dark clouds on the horizon began to approach, lightning rocking the dark gray as they soon covered the Glen and pass.

Kay became jittery at first, and despite a scolding from Rowena, grew uncontrollable with superstitious fear.  At the next clap of thunder, still far off, he nearly leap out of his skin and was on his feet, bouncing around.

"Kay," Rowena spoke impatiently.  "It is only a little thunder..."

The boy rubbed his messy red head and muttered something about bad luck, and then was off in a flash, making his way up and over the pass.  Rowena frowned as she watched her friend scamper away.  Obviously, he was not educated on weather patterns and predictions, for Rowena was not in the least frightened and knew that she had much more time.  She scribbled and shaded until a perfect representation existed on her paper--something her father was sure to delight in.  Satisfied with the sketch, and seeing that soon the rain would be coming, Rowena stood up in the vast multitude of bluebells that waved wildly in the winds of the approaching storm.  And then, she saw something she did not expect.  Nearly to the field, stumbling down the pass, was Salazar Slytherin.

Even though she was cross at him, and terribly jealous, Rowena loved him as her own dear brother, her "dear heart," as they called one another from their younger ages.  She dropped the field journal and sprinted to him, nearly blown over by the storm gusts that began to sweep across the Glen.  The sky had darkened and lightning, with it's resounding claps of thunder, was growing ever closer.

"Salazar!" she cried over the winds and thunder, running to meet him amid the whipping blades of green and blue.

Pale and deadly, Salazar's young face was ghostly white.  His usually vibrant green eyes seemed dark, as he looked at Rowena, stopping in his stead and dropping to his knees.  She raced to him, falling into his outstretched arms, both of their forms surrounded by violently tossing tall grass and blue flowers that began to look all purple in the growing murkiness.  He held her tightly--so tightly it hurt her, and she felt his fingers dig into her flying yellow hair, feeling his mouth warm near her ear as he let out horrific gasps.

"I'm...so...sorry...Rowena...my dear heart..."  She could tell he might be crying if it wasn't for the immense pain she could feel him exuding.  "I didn't...it wasn't..."

He kissed her forehead and her lips and her cheeks.  "I love you...please...forgive me...I didn't..."

Rowena was frightened, and she didn't understand any of this.  At first, she thought maybe he was apologizing for ignoring her, but she just knew it was something more important than that.  Before she could ask him what was wrong, she heard voices and saw wizards approaching, some Apparating while others raced down from the pass.

"There he is!" they were shouting.

"Halt, Slytherin!" others were crying.

"W-what?" she tried to ask, but Salazar would only repeat that he was sorry.  He would only gasp and kiss her hair.

Three of the many wizards were soon upon them, and they were forceful and mean.

"Salazar Slytherin, you must come with us.  You are under arrest..."

"No!  No!" Rowena screamed, grabbing firmly to her friend Salazar, whose dark hair blew about wildly, his green eyes so dark and frightening within his youthful, sixteen year-old face.

"You are under arrest," the wizard said, ignoring Rowena, "for the murder of Lord Ravenclaw."

Rowena screamed something that sounded like "no," and clutched Salazar so tightly, she thought they might never be able to take him away.  The wizard's words had not sunken in yet.  In her fright, all she could think of was preventing those cold wizards from taking her friend away.  One of the larger wizards came forward and with little trouble, pried her from Salazar's arms.  She was surprised to see Salazar did not struggle, but complied with the wizards, turning only to say his last words to Rowena.

"I'm...sorry..."

The wizards surrounded him and then, all of them were gone with a series of pops, leaving Rowena alone in the windswept meadow, suddenly quite dark and frightening.  

What was it the wizard had said?  Murder?

Rowena bit her lower lip and stifled her tears.  What did they mean?  In her mind she knew, but not in her heart.  Without another seconds thought, Rowena was off like one of the coming bolts of lightning, heading hard and fast for Cnoc Liath.

She knew something was wrong when she saw armored men and strange wizards around the castle, but she ignored them, heading to the one place she knew she would find her father--he would sort out all the confusion.

The library, however, was in a state of ruin.  Smoking, smoldering books and scrolls were upon the shelves...the very air had a static feel...

And there, on the floor was her father, face up with his eyes closed.  His skin was gray and waxy, and two wizards were covering him with a sheet.

"What are you doing?!" Rowena screamed, rushing to try and pull the white cloth back.

"No, darling, no," a falsely sweet voice spoke, and Rowena felt a hand pulling her away.  Her mother pulled her into a tight embrace and feigned crying as they watched the wizards take the body of her father away.

"Where are they taking him?!" Rowena demanded.  "What happened?!  Where is he going?!  LET ME GO!"

Rowena struggled and finally elbowed her mother, trying to get away.  Lady Ravenclaw let out a cry, and then grasped Rowena by the hair.  The wizards had gone with the body and they were alone.  She stopped her act of distraught wife and caring mother, slinging Rowena back by her flaxen hair.

"How dare you hit me," she spoke coldly, her icy blue eyes meeting Rowena's.

She struggled again to get away, but it hurt too much as her mother still had a firm grasp on her hair.

"Let me go!"

"Go and pack your things.  I'm sending you away immediately..."

Rowena startled, not at her mother's words, but at the realization that her father was gone and she had left his field journal out in the coming storm, when it had been entrusted especially to her.  "But my book..."

"I don't give a damn about a ridiculous book," she sneered.

At that moment, a few wizards entered to survey the scene.  Nathaira let go of her vicious grip on her daughter and resumed her play of lamentation.

Rowena took her chance and bolted from her mother's reach, tearing out into the darkening afternoon, fleeing up the brown pass and over the edge.  A slight sprinkle of rain began to fall as she bounded, nearly out of control, down the other side into the field, searching in a terrible panic for the small, leather bound book.  The charcoal, she thought...it would melt in the rain!  Frantic and on the verge of tears she searched and searched, dropping to her hands and knees as she fumbled through the growth of grass and flowers.  Then, her hand crossed something soft and square and she knew she had found the journal.  Quickly, she crawled and grabbed it, finding the charcoal stick near, and she tucked the stick safely in the front pocket.

Rowena let out a deep breath and clutched the journal tightly to her chest, falling down face first to the dark earth as the rain began.  The horrible reality of it all swept over her with the wind and rain, and she wept.


	2. Chapter One

Chapter One 

_"You are too impatient and noisy, Rowena," Lord Ravenclaw said, though his stern tone did not mask the smile in his eyes._

Salazar sniggered, leaning against a nearby shelf in the castle library, grinning at Rowena. 

_"But you promised!" she argued. "You said I can learn everything that Salazar learns, and it will not be fair if you take him into the forest to gather ingredients and see the bowtruckles, but leave me behind!"_

_Lord Ravenclaw sighed, grabbing his field journal and sliding it into a pocket in his thick robe. "Very well, but it is a rare occasion indeed for any scholar to take a seven year-old along when he wants to study a bowtruckle. If you scare any away, I will whip you._

_Rowena stiffened very seriously and nodded her head in agreement._

_"Do you have the fairy eggs, Salazar?" he questioned the boy, who looked tall for twelve, as he straightened up at Lord Ravenclaw's attention._

_"Yes, Master Ravenclaw, in my pocket." _

_"Then what are we waiting for? The forest beckons..." _

_Lord Ravenclaw left the library, his robe hem scraping the stone floor as he walked. Salazar was still grinning at Rowena, who now finally dared to smile, showing a mouth that had recently lost two front teeth. He held out a hand to her and she took it gladly._

_"You are a lucky girl, Rowena. Any other child who spoke so crossly to an adult would surely be beaten beyond their senses. Lord Ravenclaw spoils you..."_

_They walked out of the library together, and the corridors were dark and cool._

_"I wish he was my father," Salazar added quietly._

_Rowena hugged him instinctively, but did not respond with words. Times when Salazar spoke like that always made her feel uneasy for him. _

_"We should hurry to catch up," he suggested, lightening his tone. "Want to race me?"_

_He reached into the pocket of his robe and pulled out the tiny, pink and red fairy eggs. Pointing his wand at them, he performed a charm to make them unbreakable, and then slipped them back into his pocket._

_"Clever," she commented. _

_"I know--even you could carry them now, and you always seem to break things."_

_"I do not!"_

_"Do, too!"_

_Salazar took off at a sprint through the castle corridors and Rowena was behind him instantly, running as fast as her much smaller legs could go. She followed him out of the dark castle into the brilliant summer sun, everything incredibly bright. They zoomed past Lord Ravenclaw, laughing and screaming, heading for the forest. Salazar slowed some to allow her to catch up, but kept her trotting all the way to the forest edge. Apparating to meet them there, Rowena's father appeared with a harsh face._

_"The eggs?" he inquired, assuming Salazar had forgotten and squished them during the entire running._

_Salazar flicked the brown hair from his eyes in a characteristic gesture, then reached into his pocket and pulled them out. "I put a charm on them," he explained. _

_"Infragilis?"_

_"Yes, Master Ravenclaw."_

_"Excellent thinking, Salazar. Now, can you make them soft again so that the bowtruckles can eat them?"_

_"I can!" Rowena shouted, and then clamped a hand over her own mouth, her eyes wide as she drew a fearsome gaze from her father._

_"Since you still desire to pester us with your incessant impulsiveness," he spoke slowly to her, "then show us. If you do not perform the spell properly, you shall be sent home...and punished."_

_Rowena pulled out her wand, as Salazar lowered his hand full of fairy eggs. She collected herself, and then pointed the wand at the pink and red little spheres._

_"Retexo Infragilis," she said clearly, and a white light sparked from her wand. Lord Ravenclaw picked up one of the eggs._

_"Well done, Rowena."_

_She smiled proudly, and saw that Salazar was smiling, too._

_Lord Ravenclaw beckoned for them to hurry along, and they went together into the forest. Salazar was the first to spot a bowtruckle, peering at them from an unusually large hornbeam tree, with dark and sinewy bark. The bowtruckle was almost indistinguishable except for its eyes, as it blinked curiously at the eggs in Salazar's hand. He progressed slowly toward the tree and Rowena held her breath, frozen in place. She wanted to squeal with delight at seeing such an unusual creature, but she knew better._

_Once Salazar had the bowtruckle placated with fairy eggs, Lord Ravenclaw motioned them to scamper off to look for ingredients while he sketched the creature and made notations in his field journal._

_The forest felt clean and cool, and the two children wandered all about for hours, collecting different mushrooms, flowers and bits of plants and bark. Tired, they paused to rest and soak their feet in a cold, little brook, where black water rushed over dark, mossy stones._

_"I wish you didn't have to leave at the end of the summer," Rowena said, once they were both settled._

_"Me, too. Next summer will be my last here, as well, for I will have learned to Apparate and can come at any time for my lessons."_

_"What do you do when you're in the Fen?" she asked. "Do you have friends? Do you have another teacher?"_

_"I learn my father's business," he answered. "I don't like it though...I want to be a scholar like Lord Ravenclaw. I think I would like to have my own pupils one day."_

_"You are a powerful wizard," Rowena told him. "Father says so all the time. I bet you will be a scholar."_

_"I can hope," he answered, somewhat solemnly. _

_Rowena studied him, as his brow furrowed slightly in his own thoughts. Salazar's face was pale and smooth, with cleanly sharp features, and it always seemed a mass of wavy, dark hair was falling into his eyes, which he would flick away every so often. Rowena had begun to feel small, as only that summer he had grown tremendously. He was taller, rangy and starting to have a hint of an emerging square-built form. If Rowena was one to think of such things, she would have regarded Salazar as a darkly handsome boy...but she did not. Rowena herself was very plain, and so she cared little for gazing at her reflection in mirrors and thought very little about others' looks. In her mind, beautiful people were those like her mother--vain and selfish, and not worthy of her care. She saw Salazar as just that--Salazar, a friend and one of two people in her life she loved dearly._

_"Look, Rowena," he whispered, pointing downstream._

_An adder, a yellowish brown, with a dark zigzag pattern down its back, gingerly moved towards the slowly trickling water as though it might want a drink. Orange eyes that seemed angry scanned the area as it stuck its head down to touch the water with a forked tongue._

_"That's an adder," he said. "I thought they only lived in the drier areas, like the moors..."_

_He stood up slowly._

_"What are you doing?" Rowena whispered nervously. "Adders are poisonous."_

_Salazar motioned toward the snake, and then the strangest thing happened. A foreign hissing noise escaped his lips, as he looked at the snake._

_The slender reptile raised its head and looked at Salazar. _

_He turned back around to Rowena and his green eyes were surprised. _

_Rowena realized she was gaping and closed her mouth. _

_"I think..." he stammered. "I think it...talked...to me...but..." _

_"You were hissing," she squeaked._

_"No, I wasn't. I just said hello, and told it I wasn't going to hurt it..."_

_"No, you hissed!" she said, still trying to whisper so as not to startle the adder. " I heard you. Say something else to it...ask it if it's a boy or a girl."_

_Salazar seemed terribly stunned and confused. He turned back to the snake that laid still, its head motionlessly pointed at the boy._

_He began to hiss and sputter again, and Rowena watched, fascinated by the discovery._

_"She's lost," he said, still in disbelief. "An eagle caught her in the open land, but dropped her over the forest. She wants to know the way back."_

_"You can talk to snakes..." Rowena gasped, excited and nervous. This was something she had not read about before, and until that moment, would not have thought it possible. _

_"Wait until father hears about this. I am quite sure he cannot talk to snakes! Tell her...tell her it's that way!"_

_She stood and pointed, wondering if the adder might understand her, too, but the snake kept its orange eyes fixed on Salazar. _

_Again he spoke to the snake, and Rowena was entranced with the eerie hissing sounds that came from his slowly moving mouth._

_The snake flicked a forked tongue, then slithered across the brook and into the undergrowth, heading in the proper direction._

_Salazar put his hands to the side of his head, as the realization of having an incredible power hit him. He cried out and laughed nervously. _

_"Am I dreaming?" he wondered aloud._

_Rowena ran up to him, being careful not to let her bare feet slip on the mossy rocks. "I heard you!" she exclaimed excitedly. "You must be the most powerful wizard ever...besides father...but I don't think he can talk to snakes." _

_Salazar stood quietly then, gazing at the place where the snake was. "So you heard me, but I was hissing?"_

_"Yes...why, didn't you know you were hissing?"_

_"No. I was speaking in our language, or at least I thought I was."_

_"Do it again!" she pleaded. "Let me hear it again--it's so strange!"_

_"I...I don't think I can," Salazar replied, flicking his dark hair back that had fallen in his face. "I think I have to be looking at a snake..." _

_He grew quiet again, and without further word, sat back down and began to put on his shoes. _

_"Are we going already?" she asked him. _

_"Yes. I need to get back to the library and find out what this is." _

_"Can't you just ask father?" _

_"Yes," he answered. "Though I want to find out on my own. It's my power." _

_Rowena nodded, smiling at him because she understood how much Salazar was like her, was like Lord Ravenclaw. Salazar stood, his green eyes flashing brilliantly down at her, and after she gathered the basket of ingredients, she took his hand and walked him back through the forest._

From within a flat face, the wide eyes of a bowtruckle peered up at Rowena from a page in her father's field journal, having worked to conjure some unexpected memories. The little stickman held fast to a tree with his long, sharp fingers, and his bark-like skin seemed to blend in well with the trunk. Rowena sat with the journal open, feeling stiff as she always did when she handled it, as all the sacred feelings she held for the little leather-bound book had grown since her father's death. Not often did she pull it out from its safe resting place...tonight, she came closer to turning the page of the last entry--a fairy in a sea of bluebells--but her eyes had not gazed upon the sketch since she had drawn it five years before. She knew what she would feel, and that was a terrible guilt for being concerned with sketching wildflowers while her father was dueling for his life...and lost. 

The image of the tree-dwelling creature on the page had brought forth the memory of the day Lord Ravenclaw had sketched it. That was the day Salazar had learned of his most unique ability--he could talk to snakes. She remembered how fervently he searched for information about "snake-speak" in the library, even shunning their usual playtime in order to find his answers. After several days, he had finally discovered that he was what was called a Parselmouth, or a wizard who could speak Pareseltongue, the snake language. Finally, he shared the discovery with Lord Ravenclaw, who was seriously interested, though Rowena recalled apprehension on her father's face. She would later learn that the gift of Parseltongue was looked upon as being Dark, or mysterious at the very least.

That day was during the second of three consecutive summers that Salazar had taken a residence with the Ravenclaws, before he learned to Apparate from his family home in the far away Fen. Though Salazar had come to study, he also spent nearly every free moment playing with Rowena. Like two wild things set loose, they covered loch and river, hill and glen in their daily adventures, always ending in the great oak tree, where Salazar would relate exciting tales of olden days. Having few friends, she became quite attached to him, and he to her, and they could not bear to be parted. Eventually, Lord Ravenclaw conceded to Rowena's pleas and let her join Salazar for his lessons. Lord Ravenclaw always accommodated his daughter, and she knew it was because he understood that even though Rowena was young, she had a wit and a desire for learning that was no less intense than his own; and he loved her more than she could ever hope to be loved again in her lifetime. Salazar had been right...she was spoiled.

Rowena thought back to the fun of those summers, and that strange day in the forest. Even now, nearly ten years later, she could remember the coolness of the forest and the way the shaded areas twinkled as the sunlight crept through the waving leaves of the trees. She remembered how Salazar had looked then when he was twelve, his green eyes intense and curious as he discovered something powerful about himself.

Rowena shuddered and felt dark as she thought about the change in his eyes the last time she saw Salazar Slytherin...the vibrant shine was gone. He had seen death--the death of her father at his own hands. Rowena shook her head as though to set free her grim thoughts and shut the field journal, bringing herself to the present. She reclined in a small cushioned nook of a window seat, overlooking the alley below, between the old Roman wall of Ludenwic and her uncle Edelbert's library and book shop. Above the shop, Rowena had a small apartment separate from her uncle's living quarters. It had not always been so, but Rowena had become quite skilled with Charms, especially where interiors were concerned. In fact, she had managed a particularly intricate spell to not only create a new section of the interior for herself, but to also make new rooms appear in her own apartment. She had been quite proud of herself for creating a shifting floor plan, but Uncle Edelbert, though he was a scholarly and well-read wizard, kept getting lost nevertheless, for he was very old and was having trouble keeping up with the constant changes. She had it in her mind to see if she could make the stairs shift as well, but that would probably assure Edelbert never saw his living quarters again.

They had led a quiet life there for nearly five years. Immediately after her father's death, Rowena had been sent to Ludenwic to live with Edelbert, Lord Ravenclaw's only brother. So, she had shown up practically an orphan on the doorstep of the seemingly tiny shop in Ludenwic, crammed in with all the other wooden houses and shops on Bishopsgate Street, just around from the stony St. Helen's Church, and across from the dusty Old Parrish Clerk's. Edelbert maintained a well-hidden wizard's resource in the growing city of Ludenwic. Talk had ensued of moving the shop near Ollivander's Wands and Gringott's Bank, freshly built and Charmed from the view of Muggles, but he and Rowena rather liked the dusty old feel of the northern edge of the textile district. A plain, small shop to Muggles, not really of any interest, it contained a special door on the inside which welcomed wizards in to a large library of over 1000 volumes of books and scrolls, as well as manuscripts, scrolls and spell books for sale. Much like Lord Ravenclaw's library, Edelbert's was a mess, with too much to shelve and never enough space, though Rowena was working on that. She had felt nearly at home when she stepped into her uncle's business and residence, and even though it was surely unlikely, the reclusive scholar took Rowena in and they soon became fast friends. The old wizard grew to love Rowena as a daughter, and he took up the responsibility of teaching her in the arts of witchcraft and wizardry. With lessons, keeping the shop tidy, and re-shelving books, Rowena found little time to dwell on the sad events that had forever altered her life. Only at night did she really let her mind go to those darker places...and she longed for days past, on those summer nights when she and Salazar would snuggle up together and sleep as inseparable friends. 

Uncle Edelbert was caring, but Rowena learned what it truly was to be alone. 

She often wondered what became of Salazar, but Edelbert had said he would tell her one day, that she was too young to understand such things.

Now, Rowena was sixteen and an accomplished witch already, and she wondered if Edelbert felt she was ready to know. Glancing down at the field journal that she still held, Rowena wondered if she ever would be ready to face the terrible facts. She wanted only her happy memories.

"Rowena," an aged voice spoke, out of breath. "I thought I would never find my way!"

Her uncle Edelbert stood hunched in the doorway, a tired smile spread across his very old, wrinkled face. He looked very much like her father, but much older. 

"Welcome back, Uncle," she greeted, rushing over to plant a kiss on his cheek. 

"Oh, well," he blushed. "I half expected to get an earful of your temper, my being three days late in returning." 

He noticed then that she looked somber.

Rowena realized she would have normally been cross and spoken harshly out of turn, as had usually been a quality of her temperament...but for the past few weeks, running the shop and library alone, she had changed some. 

"I've...been thinking about sad things," she answered. 

"I was going to say that it seems these weeks of responsibility have tamed you." 

She nodded. "You would be right, I think. Yet..."

Edelbert's eyes lighted in recognition. He knew what she wanted to ask, but he quickly changed the subject.

"I did get a chance to go to that place in Dacia where some wizards are studying dragons," he spoke almost too loud, "and I ran into an old friend of yours...Weasley...oh, bother what was his first name...red hair, eye for trouble..." 

"Kay?"

"Yes, that's it!" Edelbert answered, laughing at his forgetfulness. "He wished to tell you hello, and to give his good friend a pair of brand new, dragon-hide gloves. I told him you had been studying Herbology lately and...well, here they are."

Edelbert handed her the pair of tough gloves. They were genuine and scaly, and were a lovely gift from Kay. Things had happened so fast, she had never had a chance to say goodbye to her mischievous friend.

"Kay was always interested in dragons...every cloud looked like a dragon to him when we daydreamed." 

"Then you should be happy to know that he has followed his dreams. He's a little worse for wear, what with all the burns and scars, but he seems very happy."

"Good," she smiled. "Thank you, Uncle."

"Well, then," he muttered. "It is late and I'm quite tired. I think I shall retire for the evening."

"I'll open up tomorrow," Rowena suggested. "You get your rest."

Edelbert looked somewhat surprised. The Rowena he used to know would have dodged any duty in order to spend time reading or practicing her skills.

He smiled. "I think you have grown up some since I left."

"Perhaps," she answered, smiling in return.

"Goodnight, dear," he said, as she kissed his cheek.

"Goodnight, Uncle Edelbert," she replied.

After his leaving, Rowena put on a nightgown and looked at her reflection in the small, old mirror on the wall as she brushed her hair. Once like yellow straw, her hair had lightened to a fine gold, gradually adopting a gentle wave. Her freckles had faded some, and her face was fair. Even her form was starting to fill out from the wispy girl she was, to a more shapely form for a young lady. As much as she wanted to ignore it, a young woman very much like her mother was starting to gaze back at her from the looking glass. The most distinct difference though, was her eyes. They were blue, but dark as twilight, quite different from the icy blue gaze of Nathaira Ravenclaw. That was enough for Rowena not to detest looking at herself in the mirror. And though everyone had always said her mother was a rare beauty, Rowena could not ever think that about herself, even though she was lovelier than her wicked mother could have ever hoped to be. 

Rowena finished brushing her hair with a yawn, then extinguished the candles lighting her room. A full moon was high in the sky, bringing a silvery light around all her books and possessions. Then, as she usually did, Rowena put off going to sleep to nestle back in the window and read for just a little while longer in the bright moonlight.


	3. Chapter Two

Chapter Two

_"Rowena Elswyth Ravenclaw, you come here this instant!"___

_Elfrida's red face appeared around the corner.  Little Rowena stood looking quite guilty, her yellow hair hidden by mud and grime.  Her dark blue eyes peeped out from a face equally as dirty.  ___

_"I ought to beat you within an inch of your life," Elfrida said angrily, rushing over as she gained a tight grip on Rowena's arm.  "Look at you, with guests arriving any minute..."___

_The nursemaid scowled at the dirty child.___

_"I bet that Kay got you into this mess.  Merlin's beard, child, you've got to learn not to follow that urchin so obediently...you do everything he tells you!  You're Lord Ravenclaw's daughter!  You should be the one to decide what games you play..."___

_"But I like mud war!"___

_"That's it!  Come along now--we must clean you up," Elfrida spoke harshly, eyeing her wand.  "I don't even think wand work will help this.  We've got to get you in some hot water."___

_"No...awwww..." Rowena protested, dragging her feet.  "It's my birthday and I shouldn't have to take a bath."___

_"Well, five years-old or not," Elfrida answered, pulling Rowena hastily by her mud-caked arm,  "Lord Ravenclaw's guests would not want to see you all covered in mud!  The Slytherins are coming today and it's quite important that you look presentable."___

_"Who are the Slytherins?"___

_"Never you mind," the nursemaid said, peering down at her as they entered the great kitchen and laundry.  ___

_House elves were scrambling frantically, preparing for the feast in a giant catacomb of dark and grimy rooms, piled everywhere with giant pots and cauldrons, stacks of plates and dishes, and a plethora of different foods all in various stages of preparation.  Steam circled around, especially from the wooden tubs in the laundry.  Wizard servants were hurrying about doing more important work than the elves, though one witch was finishing the drying of a last sheet for the guest room beds.  Rowena cringed when she saw the large wooden tub filled with steaming water.___

_"What's that you got there, 'Frida?" the witch asked.  Like Elfrida, the woman was pudgy and round faced, though her features were never quite as red as the nurse-maid's.___

_"The young lady," she answered, vexed.  Rowena recognized she was at the point where one more push would put her nurse at the frothing point, which would mean a sound whipping.  "Go on then, girl and get those things off."___

_"If she weren't wearing no clothes under that mess, we wouldn't know," the other witch laughed.  Elfrida snatched the muddy things off Rowena and lifted her up into the tub.___

_Rowena let out a cry as her skin touched the hot water.___

_"It's too hot!" Rowena whined, but shut her mouth as she saw the glare rise in Elfrida's beady eyes.  Without further debate, she sulked down into the water.___

_"Help me, Ar?" Elfrida asked the other witch, and both women began to scrub her roughly, hurrying to get Rowena cleaned and presentable before she was needed.  Rowena whimpered as it felt her skin was being rubbed pink and raw, the women worked so relentlessly on her.___

_When they were satisfied with the girl's cleanliness, Elfrida wrapped a sheet from the laundry around Rowena and whisked her back up to her chambers.  There, she dried and tidied her, dressing her in a little dark blue gown, and curling her straight yellow locks with her wand.  Moments later, her hair became straight again.___

_"Well, ain't that just what I need, you stubborn girl?  You're wishing this on me, just like when I try to cut it!  Never mind it, I'll just put it up and here..." she said a quick charm and some small white flowers popped from her wand tip.  "We'll put some of these in there to try and pretty up that straw head of yours."___

_Rowena would have complained, but she knew her nurse could not be pushed another inch.  When complete, Elfrida held a small looking glass up for Rowena to gaze at herself.  She wrinkled her freckled nose at the reflection.  She looked more like a girl who should be covered in mud than one decked in finery.  ___

_"I hate it!"___

_"Well ain't that just too bad, young lady?  You've got to look nice..."___

_She saw Rowena frown even more.  Elfrida knew what feelings were underlying Rowena's ill humor--she was going to have to spend an evening with her mother.___

_"Now look here," the nurse said, hunched down at eye level with the frowning girl.  "You be a good girl, and I'm sure you will make Lord Ravenclaw very proud."___

_She leaned forward and gave Rowena a huge kiss on her little freckled cheek.___

_"Can you do that, Rowena?"___

_Keeping the horrid face, Rowena nodded her head anyway, taking the hand of Elfrida.___

_"Come along then."___

_A sea of tall robes greeted Rowena as she entered the big event in the castle.  She saw her mother, standing golden and beautiful next to her wizened father, smiling and laughing.  Then, her eyes turned to Rowena, giving her daughter the disdainful quick glance she reserved only for her.  Rowena would have pouted, but already several people were around her, saying adult sounding things.  Immediately, Rowena felt very shy, finding the hem of her gown and the tips of her soft slippers something to stare at.  Then, there was a woman's face at her level...long, raven curls spilled around her soft face, blinking long lashes over bright green eyes that Rowena could not help be captivated by.  She was very pretty, though Rowena could feel right away that the woman was very delicate, and underneath her smiling loveliness was a hint of pallid weakness.___

_"Hello, Rowena."___

_Rowena felt shy again and looked down.___

_"Oh, don't be shy.  I know it's hard with all these grown-ups around...I heard you turned five years old today."___

_The girl plucked up, nodding, though a smile was not yet possible as she still felt quite nervous being surrounded by so many tall, swooping wizards and witches.___

_"My son, Salazar is recently ten.  Do you know who I am?"___

_Rowena shook her head.___

_"I am the wife of Lord Slytherin, Chief of the Wizards Council."___

_Rowena listened politely, fascinated still by the lovely eyes of the woman who was speaking to her.___

_"But I am sure you do not care about all that," she said softly, still smiling.___

_"Oh, but she's heard her old father ramble on about its workings now and then," a strong voice spoke.  Rowena looked up to see her father, his stern eyes peering down at her from under his white eyebrows.  He stroked his beard thoughtfully and smiled.  "I see you have met Rowena, Guendolen."___

_"What a nice girl she is, too," Lady Slytherin commented, rising.  "Rowena, your father tells me you are very smart and that you already know how to read."___

_Rowena nodded again, her interest peaked with the mention of reading.___

_"Do you know what?  Salazar loves books, and perhaps, if we find him, your father might let you show him the library."___

_Lord Ravenclaw looked down at his daughter and then at the lovely Lady Slytherin.  "I suppose," he answered.  "Your son is conversing with Fyren and his inner circle, I believe.  Shall I motion for him?"___

_Rowena never heard her father ask anyone permission before...then, she saw him nod in a direction, though she could not see through all the robes.  Lady Slytherin turned and waited on her son, but Lord Ravenclaw glanced back down at his daughter.___

_"Remember my rules about the library, Rowena.  I have only had to remind you of them once, do you recall?"___

_She winced and nodded.___

_"Very well," he replied, and then a motion to his side caught his attention.___

_The wall of robes opened and there stood Lady Slytherin, her delicate hand resting on the shoulder of a stick of a boy with a mop of dark hair, seeming as uncomfortable as Rowena.  He looked very much like his mother, and the top of his head came to about her chest as he tried to stand tall.___

_"Salazar, this is Rowena Ravenclaw," she introduced them.  He grinned, causing Rowena to smile for the first time that night.  "Lord Ravenclaw has agreed to let Rowena show you the library--and it is quite extensive, so I suppose you could while away the evening in there, Salazar.  Does that sound agreeable?"___

_"Yes," he answered nervously, looking up at the tall, powerful form of Rowena's father.  "Thank you, Lord Ravenclaw."___

_"It is appropriate I think, as you will be spending a good deal of time there soon, Salazar."___

_Rowena glanced around, wondering what this meant.___

_Lady Slytherin smiled down at her.  "Your father will be instructing my son in the finer points of wizardry.  In fact, for the next three summers, Salazar will be living here at Cnoc Liath as a pupil and apprentice scholar."___

_Rowena saw Salazar stick out his chest proudly, and a flash lit his eyes--eyes that were exactly like his mother's.___

_"I hope you will become friends," Lady Slytherin said.___

_"Here they are together," a woman said to another group of robes.  "How adorable..."___

_Lord Ravenclaw gave them a wave to get on, and so Rowena lead Salazar through the room, and in the direction of the library.  She felt very nervous, having just met the older boy who, even though he wasn't big at all, didn't seem like much of a difference from the robed giants that she had just been surrounded by.  Yet, Salazar seemed to walk along with her, friendly enough.  Rowena decided he seemed nice, and as he wasn't any taller than the oldest stable boy who she had flung smartly with mud only that afternoon, she began to relax and felt herself come back from the strange shy place she had gone to.___

_The castle corridors were lit with brightly blazing torches, and occasionally the two children passed a witch or wizard, servant or elf, that nodded or bowed.  The closer they came to the library, however, the more deserted the halls were.  A house elf hurried in and lit the library as they approached, and so it was quite bright enough for Rowena to see Salazar's eyes go wide with delight when he entered the library.___

_"It's big, isn't it?" Rowena asked, beaming and nearly bragging.___

_"Yes..." he answered her, slowly turning in circles as he viewed the massive collections of Lord Ravenclaw.  "Your father lets you in here?  Do you read?"___

_"Oh, yes!" she replied.  "But I have rules and things...I got whipped once for breaking the rules, so I'm good now.  There's stories in those."  Rowena pointed to a shelf filled with books and scrolls, partially covered by a small tapestry depicting a battle.___

_"What stories do you like?" Salazar inquired, beginning to run his fingers along the spines, taking in all the wonderful volumes.___

_"The one with Circe and the cyclops, and when they get turned into pigs..."___

_"The Odyssey," Salazar told her, stopping.  "I know the whole thing."___

_He fell into a chair and sighed with a smile.  "I can't wait until I come here in the summer."___

_"Me, too," Rowena said, thinking then that they might be friends.  "Do you like mud war?"___

_"I don't know...but it sounds fun, I think."___

_"Oh, we play all kinds of war and there's a monster in the Loch.  Kay's seen it."___

_Salazar smiled again at her, and looked very happy as though he just realized he was a child and was about to have fun.___

_"What stories do you like?" she asked him.___

_"My favorite is Sigemund."___

_"Siggymend?" she tried to repeat.___

_"Sig-e-mund, the hero...have you never read or heard that one before?  It's from olden days."___

_"Please tell it to me!" she pleaded, sitting down on the floor before him with rapt attention.___

_"All right...let's see," Salazar replied, flicking his dark hair from his face.  "Of all the tales told, many of the deeds of the Waesling have been forgotten, of his weary and roving wars, his feuds and fighting unknown to men, save Fitela.  What time were they not bosom comrades in battle and in bitter strife?  Many of monster blood these two had slain with the great sword edge, and great glory Sigemund had gained that lingered long after death, when he daringly slew the dragon that guarded the hoard of gold..."_

A warm, midmorning sunlight spilled through the thin, rectangular windows of the library, reflecting on the floating sea of dust in the air.  Rowena reclined in a chair, holding an old scroll telling of the adventures of the Waesling.  She remembered the first time she had heard that tale...

"Go on and try that top shelf now," Uncle Edelbert requested, tossing her back to the present.

Rowena studied the library, a square room topped by a low ceiling, with stone walls lined with shelves, and rows of shelves packed in allowing only a small area in the center for a few desks and chairs, and a librarians counter with a large ledger resting on top.  It was a perpetual mess and extremely cramped.  The library was the basement floor, and a dark wooden stairway lined with tapestries lead the way up to the smaller book shop area that, while Edelbert sold books and scrolls there, was more or less a facade to the real wizard area.  The door to the stairway was in the back of the shop, and it was charmed so that only wizards would notice it.  The library, despite its windows that looked out at foot level on the street, was always a bit dark, even with the bright morning light.  

Rowena sighed and got out of her chair, then pulled over a ladder and climbed up, sneezing again as she stirred up a top shelf of old scrolls.

"Do you really think it could have found its way up here, into these..." she looked at the tags attached to the ribbons binding a few of the scrolls.  "Zoroastrian incantations...and songs of Marduk?"

"Well, it is worth a look."

Rowena sighed.  It was her fault that the scroll on advanced Transfiguration was lost, as she had tried a charm to increase shelf capacity and had accidentally made all the scrolls and books vanish in the Transfiguration section.  She had found all of them but one, and of course, a patron of the library requested it.  She felt around, her hand resting on something hard, and pulling, saw it was the handle of a scroll.  Sliding it out, she checked the tag.

"Here it is..." she was just announcing, when the sounds of someone traveling by floo carried down into the library from the fireplace in the shop above.

"Here _he_ is," Edelbert laughed with a sigh of relief.  He whispered then, "He's a new patron, just into town."

She scrambled down the ladder met her uncle at the librarian's counter,  handing him the scroll, just as a grisly old wizard entered.

"Cravenwort?" he called.  "I've come for a Divination scroll."

Rowena shot a shocked glance at her uncle, who casually rolled his eyes and placed the Transfiguration scroll on a shelf under the counter.  This was not the wizard they were expecting.  It was the old warlock Archibald Cragg, a retired Wizard Council member who was rapidly loosing his wits.

"Good morning, Warlock Cragg," Edelbert greeted.

"Very well, very well, Ravencroft.  I have ordered a cauldron and some mugwort."

"That would be the Apothecary, sir," Edelbert spoke in his most placating voice.

"Nonsense!" the old wizard cried.  "Been coming here for over a hundred years and I've always got my Divination scrolls here."

"Yes, of course.  Let me fetch it for you," Rowena told him.

The old wizard noticed her for the first time and startled.  "My...oh...yes...hurry along then," he replied.  "When did you get this beauty, old Rallencraw?"

"She is my niece, though you met her only last..."

"Stuff and nonsense, Cravencroft!  I would remember such a sight as that on my old eyes...oh, to be a young warlock again."

Rowena plucked a fairly useless Divination scroll from the library and managed a smile as she handed it to the old wizard, after she showed her uncle the scroll briefly.   Edelbert nodded with understanding.

            "For such a loyal patron, this scroll is on the house," he announced.

            Archibald Cragg seemed pleased, and then winked a wrinkled eye at Rowena before he turned to leave.  Edelbert gave her a nod to get back to re-shelving while he escorted the old wizard back to the fireplace.  She shook her head, and then immersed herself again in a back row of shelves.  Edelbert called from the stairs that the new patron was coming in and to please help as he was still assisting the warlock.

Rowena shelved a misplaced scroll, finally fixing her past mistake with the botched charm.  She sighed, patted the shelf and and headed back around to greet the new patron.

A tall young wizard was standing there, looking around at all the books in awe of the extensive library.  His hair was a sandy brown and somewhat curly, and he rubbed it with his hand.  Rowena stood, waiting on him, before he turned around and smiled, his eyes dark brown and friendly.

"Hello," he greeted her, then commented,  "It's a little crowded in here."

"We have over a thousand volumes," she replied.  "And not nearly enough space.  I tried a charm to increase shelf capacity, but ended up misplacing all the Transfiguration materials."

"Oh no!  But I've come for a Transfiguration scroll, am I out of luck?"

"No.  I just finished repairing it all," Rowena answered, reaching under the counter and pulling the scroll up.  "Here it is.  As it is advanced and one of rare value, you may only read it here in the library."

"Yes, Master Ravenclaw told me in the owl...oh, I'm Godric Gryffindor.  How do you do?"

He nodded.

"Rowena Ravenclaw," she introduced herself.  "I'm a librarian here with my uncle."

Godric looked surprised.  "_The_ Rowena Ravenclaw?  _Lord Ravenclaw's_ daughter?"

She wasn't sure what to think of his surprise and curiosity.  The way he spoke made her frightened to think that her family tragedy was well known.

"Lady Ravenclaw," Godric spoke apologetically.  "I'm sorry.  I didn't mean to gape...that was very rude of me."

"I suppose what happened is not a secret?" she asked.

"Well, you know how scandals go...it's still a talk but I'm not into all that gossip..." he stopped and sighed.  "I fear I'm digging myself into a deeper hole, aren't I?"

"I...I.." Rowena was not sure how she felt, though she recalled the feeling of paralysis from the Petrificus Totalis spell, and it was something similar to that.

"I should really stop talking," Godric told her uncomfortably, tapping the scroll on the counter.  "Should get to reading up on this..."

He stalked away; a bit embarrassed at the obvious shock he had caused Rowena.  Once he was seated and reading, Rowena walked through the library, careful not to acknowledge Godric Gryffindor, then hurried up the steps to where her uncle was tidying up the soot from the earlier visitor.

"Alright," she began to lay it out for him, feeling a bit of her tenacity come back.  "If someone I've never met knows more about what happened with father and Salazar, then I think it's time you tell me."

Edelbert was startled at her abruptness, but quickly gained his composure, running a hand over his fuzzy, bald head.

"Now...here?"

"Yes!" she demanded. 

He sighed, and went into deep thought, and she could tell he was trying to figure out where to start.

"Your mother...she was...from an average wizard family, with a bit of mixed blood, and had nothing as far as a dowry was concerned.  But you see, Rowena, she wanted to move up in the world, and about the only wizard of ancient stock who would have her, even though she was very beautiful, was Lord Ravenclaw.  My brother was older, and a lonely scholar--practically a hermit such me--and he was easily persuaded to pursue Nathaira, a beautiful young witch who seemed interested in him.  I think he knew...but that didn't matter for he did love her very much, Rowena.  Of course, Nathaira quickly distanced herself because she found that your father was quite a bit smarter than she had planned.  He would not let her go, and so she was trapped in a marriage that for her was just intended to be a stepping stone to bigger and better things.  There existed some definite bitterness between the two, though only the two spouses will ever have known the depth of their problematic relationship.  What I tell you is coming from my point of view, Rowena, so it is one sided at best, and my brother and I rarely saw each other as you well know."

"What does this have to do with what happened?"

"In my opinion, a great deal, for it shows the terrible motive of your mother, though no one really knows for sure what precipitated all the events, and who was lying and who was truthful.  That day, Salazar Slytherin fought your father in a duel and he won--he used an Unforgiveable curse, Rowena.  As to why they fought in a duel, there are two sides of the story--Slytherin's and the Lady Ravenclaw's.  Your mother claims Salazar Slytherin was in love with her, and because she resisted his advances out of loyalty to her husband, he decided to challenge the man who was responsible for preventing his love to come to fruition.  Your mother claims it was jealous rage that brought Salazar to kill your father."

Rowena felt terrible anger at this...Salazar hated Nathaira Ravenclaw as much as she did, and was tempted to hex her on the several occasions he witnessed her cruelty towards Rowena.

"That is not possible," Rowena said.  "He didn't love her."

"Well, that brings us to Salazar's story.  Admittedly, your mother was terribly beautiful, and had a way with enchanting men.  As a sixteen year-old lad, I think maybe he was charmed by her in a way...enough to come close to her so that she might influence his actions with potions and spells.  Salazar claimed that for weeks, she had given him love potions and put him under the Imperius curse.  She used him to set up things for her so that she might eventually move on, and finally, he was made to challenge her husband.  What better wizard to use, than one whose skills she knew were powerful, and one who she knew would be near her regularly.  I, myself, find Slytherin's story more believable.  However, he was brought to trial before the Wizards Council, and that was a horrific event for his father, who was indeed the Chief and had to preside over the hearings. They could find no evidence to blame Lady Ravenclaw, so the blame for the death fell solely on Salazar.  With the evidence of the use of an Unforgivable curse, death or life imprisonment is always the sentence, yet it is always hard to give harsh punishment when the one who committed the crime testifies he was under the Imperius curse.    So, instead of death or imprisonment, the Council took a different action on suspicion that the Imperius curse was used.  Salazar Slytherin was made to revoke all his rights as the heir of his father, Lord Feryn Slytherin.  He lost all that would be his, his future place in his father's affairs and a seat on the Council.  He was disowned and was set loose with nothing...not even you, Rowena.  We may never know exactly what happened, or who was telling the truth if either of them was even telling the truth at all."

"What became of Salazar?"

"I am not sure.  As for your mother, she lost most of everything as your father had bequeathed his fortunes to you, and his library came to me...what was left of it.  Where she is now, I do not know."

"What did you mean, he lost even me?  Was I his only friend?"

Rowena had never seen Edelbert look so uncomfortable, seeing his face go a little shy and red.

"You don't know that?" he asked.  

Rowena frowned.

"You see, Rowena...when you were born, a daughter of the noble house of Ravenclaw, and also the child of a popular and beautiful witch, the heads of many noble families were anxious to form an alliance.  Lord Slytherin approached your father and the alliance was made...you and Salazar were betrothed, Rowena.  I thought surely your father had told you something important like that."

"No," she returned, breathless.  "I...I need to..."

"Rowena..."

She took a tight grip on the skirt of her dress, and walked stiffly down the stairs into the library.  Godric, who had been looking toward the stairs curiously, snapped his head back down over the unrolled scroll as Rowena appeared.  She moved back through the cramped rows of shelves until she was at the far, dark corner of the room where she dropped down to the floor and put her head in her hands.

They were betrothed.  If those horrors had not taken place, she and Salazar would most likely have been married after she had turned sixteen.  She had never thought about him that way, but she supposed they would have been happy about those circumstances...but that happiness was never to come.  Her mother took that away.

Rowena was bewildered that her mother, desiring something for herself, would have her own husband killed and would destroy a boy like Salazar.  If that was in fact what happened.  Rowena's mind was spinning with different scenarios, and the more images she had of her mother charming Salazar, the angrier and sadder she became.  She wanted to believe Salazar's story, yet the memory of how he ignored her before it all happened...the look of terrible sadness in her father's eyes when she had told him Salazar was with her mother...was it possible that the affair wasn't one sided?  Rowena shook her head and let out a painful sound, realizing the truth in Godric's words--_it was scandalous...___

In one day, Rowena had lost her friend, and she had seen that darkness in his eyes--Salazar had changed.  He had used the worst of the Unforgiveable curses.  In that same day, her father had left her forever at the hands of the very boy he had treated as a son.  

"Rowena," Edelbert's voice came softly, as his head turned from around the edge of a bookshelf.  "I am terribly sorry that all of this has happened, and that the story of it has been so painful for you to hear.  It was a terrible betrayal of you and your father, and I knew that it would pain you to learn of the sketchy details...that is why I have put it off for so long.  You know how sensitive I am about your feelings..."

"I...understand," she answered, as Uncle Edelbert smiled sheepishly.   As an old man who had been hidden away in libraries for nearly his whole life, he still was clueless as to how he should interact with Rowena when she was upset, even though he had been experiencing her moods for five years.  He came over to her and hunched over, patting her head.

"There, there, Rowena..."

"Why?!" she asked him then, feeling tears start to run down her face.  She had not cried for her father since that stormy afternoon in the field, and now it was coming on again in a torrent.  "Why did she have to be so wicked?  Oh, I miss him!  I miss my father!"

Rowena was sobbing now, as Edelbert continued to pat her golden head as his method of consolation.  They remained that way for a while, until a voice caught both of their attention.

"Ahem...Master Ravenclaw," Godric Gryffindor spoke quietly, and through a teary sight, Rowena could see he felt horrible for interrupting.  "That old warlock is back and he's going on about something--well, actually, he said something about being a...suitor...and he's raving mad..."

For some reason, Rowena came out of her hurt to laugh amidst her crying.

            "Oh, dear," Edelbert sighed.  "I must go and see to this, Rowena.  Will you be alright?"

"Yes," she answered, wiping the tears from her cheeks. 

Edelbert shuffled off to deal with the deranged wizard, but Godric stayed, looking down at Rowena sorrowfully.

"I can't help but feel this is all my fault," he said, sitting down next to her.  "May I?"

She nodded.

"I heard the whole thing...for me it has always been a story, but I realize now that it was part of your life, and I can only imagine what a terrible thing it was for you.  How old were you then, ten or so?"

"Eleven," she answered.  "Salazar...he was my friend...and what he did..."

"He betrayed you and your father," Godric said.  "That is the worst thing you can do to a friend."

"Yes, it is."

"Do you think, maybe one day you might be able to forgive Slytherin?"

"I really can't say," Rowena said honestly, wiping her eyes and cheeks.

"Oh, here," said Godric, pulling a handkerchief from his robe pocket.

"Thank you, Lord..."

"No!  Just Godric--my father's the Lord.  The old Gryffindor family is from the Moors.  My father is a big hero...saved the nearby hamlet from a Welsh green that kept eating their sheep.  He's popular with Wizards and Muggles, though I don't suppose that will last for long.  Muggles have been getting stranger towards us lately.  I see Ollivander's and Gringott's have hidden their shops away completely.  Has your uncle thought of moving the library to that part of Ludenwic?"

"Yes, but we like it here."

"Listen to me," Godric spoke a bit nervously, "I've got us off the subject."

"That's alright, as I don't think I want to talk about it anymore."

"Well, good.  I think we will be friends...Rowena...may I call you that?"

She nodded and smiled.

"I suppose I will be coming here a lot as I'm in the city for a while.  I'm taking some classes from an old warlock..."

"Who?" she asked.

"Master Deogol Sinistra..."

"I know him," Rowena replied.  "He was a friend of my father.  He is very skilled in astronomy.  My father used to say that Master Sinistra was the pupil of Eratosthenes, but I never believed him."

"I have heard nothing but horror stories about his methods...quite difficult to learn from, but a damn fine wizard.  He only takes a few new pupils every few years, so I am pretty lucky to be here.  I suppose I'll have to do a lot of studying here in this library."

"So that's why you needed that scroll?"

"Yes, I'm trying to polish up.  I was always too busy playing outside and going hunting with my father when I should have been studying the craft.  Of course, since I never favored languages, it's a mess trying to read all of that Latin."

Rowena raised her eyebrows.  "You find it difficult?"

Godric shifted.  "Are you telling me...?"

"Yes, I read it fluently.  In fact, I perfected the techniques of that particular scroll three years ago.  It was one of my father's.  Salazar..."

She stopped and hung her head down.  It hurt to say his name more than it hurt to think about her father.  Lord Ravenclaw's death was still hard to bear, but Salazar's betrayal carried so much more hurt.

Godric put his arm around her, and she looked up quickly, surprised at the gesture.

"I mean only friendship," Godric explained.  "I mean, you are very fair and really, really pretty--quite tempting--however, I prefer the young ladies I pursue to have red hair."

Rowena laughed.

"So, if you know any..." he joked.

"No, I don't really know anyone our age at all."

"That's because you've been cooped up in this dusty old place, Rowena.  You love books and are very clever, but there are other things to do!" Godric exclaimed, standing up and then taking her hand as he pulled her to her feet.  "Have you considered Sinistra's tutelage?"

"Uncle Edelbert suggested it once, but...I think I may be too young."

"Nonsense.  I'm only eighteen and he's accepted me.  Already I can see you have a deeper knowledge than me as far as Transfiguration goes...and you are the daughter of one of the Wizarding world's most noted scholars of recent times.  I'm sure he would accept you."

Godric gave her a tug.  "Besides, now that we've met, I can't go off to classes without you.  Whom would I copy from?"

They laughed and Rowena went with him to the table, and they sat down in some creaky, old chairs.

"Can I use this parchment here?" he asked.

"Yes, but what for?"

"So we can write your application letter.  Come on, it doesn't really matter what you put on it, as long as you sign it Rowena Ravenclaw."

"I don't know..." she answered, feeling as though she was getting spun faster and faster in a whirlwind.  She had just met Godric, had learned of her family's tragedy, and now was tempted to write a letter to apply for tutelage with Master Sinistra...she had felt a complete range of emotions in such a short time, that she wondered if she was thinking clearly enough to make such a decision.  What would her uncle say?

Godric was watching her expectantly, his brown eyes shining.  Rowena knew then, she and Godric would always be friends.  They just seemed to match.  In some ways, he reminded her of Kay, and what he might be like now that he was grown.  Rowena would never back down a dare from Kay, and now it seemed, she would do the same with Godric.

"I'll do it," she announced decidedly.  "Quill?"

Godric dipped the nearby quill in the inkbottle, and then handed it to her ceremoniously.

"Good luck, but I don't think you'll need it," he replied with a smile.

~*~

The names were all selected from a list of Anglo-Saxon names, which is why they seem a bit different…

_KittyWillow—_Yes, this is based loosely on a Poison Tree, and I think in the end it will all make sense.  It also has something to do with _their_ tree…

_Sonya—_I had to ask my friend who's reading it what you two meant, because she said that as well!  Nice complement…I need to see that movie!

_Pyracantha—_You rock!  I'm so glad this is a fave!  I just finished the massive task of Polaris, so now I'm taking it easy and having some fun with this fic.  Hope you continue to enjoy it.  It is a bit different from the usual HP fic.

_Cennet_—Of course!  I will get there eventually…but first, they must become friends.  That will be fun…

Thanks lovely reviewers!  I 3 readers!


	4. Chapter Three

**~*Chapter Three*~**

_"Salazar…are you asleep?"_

_There was a grumble, and then a gruff voice spoke.  "I'm not now."_

_Still sometimes, Rowena wondered if it was Salazar speaking to her.  Last summer, he had grown taller, and this summer it seemed his voice was deeper._

_"It's today," Rowena pleaded, leaning over the boy who was buried under a thick heap of blankets.  "Today!"_

"Yes, yes," Salazar replied, rolling over to face her and blinking his eyes sleepily.  "I know, but we have lessons first…"

_"Oh, but think of all the fun we're going to have.  It will be the longest day of the year and we can stay up late, just like last year, and we'll see fairies and there will be dancing, and father says we're to…"_

_"Rowena!"_

_Rowena caught herself and smiled.  "Sorry, Salazar but I'm just so excited I can't sleep another minute."_

_"Look out the window," he requested.  "Is the blasted sun even up yet?"_

_Rowena slid off the massive bed and rushed over to the windows, flinging back the thick, velvet drapes.  A pale glow was surfacing beyond the mountains, but the sky was still sprinkled with stars._

_"Well?"_

_Rowena pressed her face to the glass.  "No."_

_"You have done this the past two Midsummer's, and the last time I stayed here for Yule, as well.  Oh, and your birthday…I'm glad mine comes in the winter."_

_She pressed closer to the glass, seeing the Loch placid in early morning stillness.  The silver strands of beach were a dark gray; a bird landed here and there, and a bit of twinkling glittered around the giant oak tree._

_"Fairies!  There's some, by our tree, Salazar.  Oh, little tiny ones and I can see them blinking!_

_"Great…fairies," he moaned, and threw the covers back over himself.  "Something I haven't seen before…that can wait until the sun comes up."_

_Rowena stomped her foot.  "You aren't any fun."_

_"That's because I'm tired.  We have the whole day, Rowena.  Come here."_

_Salazar, his eyes barely opened, pushed back the covers and motioned for Rowena to climb in.  She pouted for a moment, and then reluctantly climbed into the bed and they snuggled in together._

_"See?" he said, his voice drifting off.  "Sleep is good…"_

_Rowena had the feeling he was asleep already, and she knew he would get mad if she asked him again if he was sleeping.  So, she lay there quietly knowing there was no way she would ever be able to fall asleep—in fact, she wondered how she had managed it during the night.  Tired, and trembling from excitement, Rowena lay still and tried not to move so she wouldn't wake Salazar, and let her mind float away, imagining all of the fun things they would get to do that day._

_She knew first of all, her father would consent for she and Salazar to go with Kay's family into the heart of the Glen, where all the local folk, Muggle and Wizard, would be gathering for the all-day celebration.  Elfrida would insist on flowering Rowena's hair with daisies and roses, then promise to see her there, as Rowena would tear off for the faire.  Rowena smiled, laying there in bed, already anticipating the smells of the food, the music, the dancing, the play with the Oak King and his crowning…the thoughts of all the simple splendors made her shiver from excitement.  She could just taste the berry tarts, and smell the flowers, and hear the songs._

_Unable to contain herself, Rowena began to sing her favorite Midsummer's Day song, in the tiniest whisper she could bring herself to make._

Light of the shore 

Brushes the waters

Touch of the wind

Rustles the oak

Call of the song

Summons the dancers

To twilight revel

Of all faery folk 

_Rowena felt Salazar move and she instantly hushed herself.  He pulled his arms together around her, giving her a squeeze._

_"Don't bother hushing yourself," he whispered.  "You've gone and woken me up, and I don't think I'll be able to go back to sleep now."_

_"Do you want to go outside before our lessons?  The fairy lights are pretty by the shore, and the sands are all silvery."_

_Salazar sat up and rubbed his eyes, causing Rowena to laugh as she saw the dark hair standing up in strange places on his head.  _

_"Oh, shut up," Salazar said playfully as Rowena continued to laugh and tried to ruffle his hair.  He held her back.  "Really…"_

_Salazar took a pillow and hit her with it, causing her to laugh harder._

_"Come on!" she cried, jumping down from the bed._

_"In our nightclothes and bare feet?"_

_"Yes!" Rowena called, throwing open the door.  She then remembered that quiet was a good idea, and proceeded to tiptoe out into the dark corridor.  "Salazar," she quietly called to him._

_"Here I am," he answered, appearing at her side, seeming even taller with his standing hair.  He took her hand and they hurried through the halls, avoiding the kitchen area and ducking away from house elves and servants.  They were nearly in the clear, when a voice called from behind._

_"You're both up I see," Elfrida observed.  "Which saves me the trouble of coming to wake you.  Lord Ravenclaw expects within the hour for your lessons."_

_"But it's so early!" Rowena complained._

_"Well, it ain't your decision," the nurse replied, taking both Rowena and Salazar's sleeves.  "Hurry along to the kitchen to break your fast, and then you can dress and meet the Lord in the library."_

_She shuffled the children along, and Rowena decided not to complain any further, as she was very hungry.  After eating, cleaning up and dressing, Rowena and Salazar hurried to the library with expectations that if they worked diligently and well in all of their lessons, Lord Ravenclaw might let them out early so that they could scamper off to the faire.  As usual, Rowena's father was sitting at the tapestry-covered table in the center of the library, hunched over his writing desk.  His wand was in one hand and a quill in the other, though he paused from his business to give both children a stern look._

_"You both look up to mischief," he spoke deeply.  "Up before sunrise, running off to somewhere?  Were you planning on missing your lessons?"_

_"No, father," Rowena answered him, as Salazar said, "No, Master Ravenclaw."_

_"I see."_

_The old, yet powerful wizard set down the quill and rolled up the scroll he had been working on, then slipped his wand into the front pocket of his long, red robe._

_"Retrieve your Arithmancy notebooks and your copies of the Nicomedes scroll, as that will be our first lesson today; and as it is the summer solstice, we shall review Eratosthenes's process in calculating the circumference of the earth.  We will also read some from Platonicus."_

_Rowena would have normally heaved a great sigh, but on this day she would have to be on her best behavior, lest her father might restrict her from the faire._

_The children resigned themselves to a day of tough brainwork, and before they knew it, noon was approaching._

_"Rowena," Lord Ravenclaw said, causing her to look up from her arithmancy work._

_"Yes, father?"_

_"What can you tell me about Midsummer's Day, in its astronomical significance?"_

_Salazar smirked—for him it was an easy question, but the scope of the question made Rowena balk a bit._

_"Well…first of all…" she began, looking up at the thick beams in the ceiling.  An interruption happened then, as a great tawny owl swooped in, its dark feathers beating the air as it came to land on Lord Ravenclaw's writing desk._

_"That's my father's owl," Salazar told them, standing up._

_Rowena watched her father take the letter from the large bird, unrolling it carefully.  Salazar was definitely unsure about the letter, as his face went pallid and his green eyes gave an unsettled flicker.  Lord Ravenclaw began to read the letter, and immediately, Rowena knew something was wrong, just by his pained facial expressions.  He turned his dark eyed gaze to Salazar when he finished the letter, and Rowena nearly expected her father to cry._

_She wanted desperately to ask what, but the silent acknowledgement between Salazar and her father was palpable, and there was no way that she could come between them._

_Salazar straightened up and took a deep breath.  "Mother?" he asked, his voice strained to sound calm._

_"I am afraid so, Salazar," Lord Ravenclaw answered in a gray tone._

_"When?"_

_"This morning, just before dawn.  Your father wants you to return as soon as possible, but I won't take you home until you are ready, Salazar."_

_"Yes, of course," the boy replied, trying his hardest to maintain his composure.  "Thank you, Master Ravenclaw.  May I be excused?"_

_"If that is what you wish."_

_Salazar nodded, and then Rowena saw a tear roll down his cheek as he turned quickly on his heels and strode from the library.  _

_"Salazar!" Rowena cried, about to go after him.  He took off at a run, and Lord Ravenclaw grabbed her by her arm._

_"Let him go, Rowena."_

_"What's happened to Lady Slytherin?" she questioned, feeling a terrible sensation in her stomach.  She could only guess what had happened, and she hoped her fears were not true._

_"She died this morning from her illness, Rowena," Lord Ravenclaw replied, despair in his voice that Rowena had never heard before._

_"No…but I loved her…Salazar loved her, father…" Rowena said as she began to cry.  Her father scooped her into his arms, and sat down with her in his lap._

_"Ssh, Rowena," he whispered.  Crying into her father's chest, Rowena couldn't help feeling grief for not only Lady Slytherin, but also the son who was left behind.  She knew Salazar loved his mother dearly, and worried for him to have to go back with only his father, who was very strict with him.  It would be similar to her own father dying, leaving her alone with her wicked mother.  Poor Salazar…_

_Rowena squirmed to get up._

_"No," Lord Ravenclaw said firmly, though caringly.  "He wanted to be alone.  Give Salazar a little time.  I know you love him, and so do I, and we will be here for him when he needs us."_

_Rowena fell back against her father and lay with him quietly for what seemed like hours._

_So, Midsummer's Day passed, and the faire, which Rowena had been longing for since the first ray of summer sunlight, went on without her and she didn't even care.  Eventually, her father released her, and though she promised not to, she went looking for Salazar.  He was allusive, and all her searching turned up no signs of Salazar.  Eventually, Rowena grew hungry and allowed Elfrida to snatch her up and feed her.  The nurse gave her a gentle talking to about life and death, grief and consolation, as Rowena ate solemnly.  The brightest, most beautiful day of summer had turned out to be the darkest, and she was disconsolate.  Before turning her loose, though, Elfrida insisted on the yearly tradition, and decorated Rowena's hair with daisies and small rose buds.  Rowena smiled and hugged her nurse before setting off again to look for her friend._

_Twilight was settling in then, the last warm rays of orange and red fading over the mountains.  Some stars were visible, twinkling in the dark blue of the sky as the fairies in the waving fields of grass near the silver strand.  Rowena ran through the soft, tall grass, sending fairies scattering and flitting, even chasing her as she made her way to the sandy shore.  She heard a buzzing chatter as some of the little fairies landed on the flowers in her hair._

_The sand was still a little warm from the day's sun, and Rowena dug her toes down into it, staring out across the silent waters.  Floating on the air was a song, music and singing from the faire, and Rowena heard the tune of a familiar song…_

Light of the shore 

Brushes the waters

Touch of the wind

Rustles the oak

Call of the song

Summons the dancers

To twilight revel

Of all faery folk 

_…though now, she certainly did not feel like singing it._

"Don't you hear it, Rowena?  It's your favorite song."

_She spun around, trying to see where Salazar was, and saw him perched in the oak tree.  She hurried over to the great, rough base of the trunk and peered up at him, hidden in the shadows.  Twinkles of little fairies swirled around, and she could hear their small sounds._

_"You missed the faire, didn't you?" he asked._

_"Yes, but I…Salazar, I am so sad for you and for your pretty mother."_

_He showed her a sad smile, and she could see he was crying.  Rowena began to climb the tree and was soon sitting on a thick branch next to him, hugging him._

_"Do you know what I always wished, Rowena?  This may sound strange…"_

_Rowena got that uneasy feeling again, such as when Salazar would say he wished Lord Ravenclaw were his father.  "I wished that by some magic, my mother could have married your father.  She would have been stronger then…"_

_He started to sob.  "And now…she's gone…forever…and what I'm scared of most is…having to go home.  This is my last summer here, and now, she won't be there for me when I'm home…and I wasn't there for her…when…"_

_He cried, and that was enough to tear at Rowena's heart as she began to cry as well.  Salazar gripped her tight.  "You are my family now, you're all I have…you're the only one who loves me."_

_"I do love you," she said, "and so does father.  We won't leave you, I promise.  Father even said we'll go with you to the Fen and stay with you until you come back home with us."_

_Salazar, still crying, nodded his head and they embraced again, holding on to one another as the last ember of light disappeared behind the mountains, and night encircled them; and all around, the golden glows of tiny fairy lights danced in the faint music that drifted on the Midsummer's night breeze._

~~~

"Rowena, it's Midsummer's Day!  How can you sit here in this dark dungeon of a library?" Godric protested.  "Can't you just smell the food?  Hear the music?"

"I told you, Godric," Rowena replied, taping her chin with the wispy white end of a quill.  "I am not fond of Midsummer's Day.  Besides, our classes begin with Master Sinistra tomorrow and I want to review a few things…"

"Nonsense.  We are going to the faire.  Ludenwic, I'm sure, cannot compare to the festivities on my father's manor, but it is going to be splendid.  I will not allow you to sit here!"

Godric smiled, and plucked the quill from Rowena's hand, then took her arm and pulled her from the table that was stacked with books and scrolls.

            "Now," he instructed.  "Go and put on a more Muggle-like dress so that we don't get noticed."

Godric was already clothed in hose and a brown jacket with skirting—clad like a Muggle, but also recognizable as a noble.  

Rowena sighed, but could not help catching Godric's infectious smile.

            "Fine.  I'll need a few minutes."

She made her way quickly up to her apartment, feeling her smile fade the further she went as the memory of a past Midsummer's Day fought to stay at the forefront of her mind.  The day now held a somber meaning for her, and she remembered sitting in the tree with Salazar as he cried over the death of his mother.  The thoughts of her lost friend, both in memory and in wonder at his present situation, made her feel dark and uneasy.

When Rowena reached her apartment, she changed from her robes into a more suitable dress.  Ludenwic, the biggest town, contained a growing population of Muggles who feared wizards or thought them vile, and it was deemed necessary to hide one's true identity.  Rowena held that knowledge with disdain.  That tension did not exist in the Glen, though most were wizards there, and the Muggles looked to her father and the other wizard families to keep them safe from invading Vikings.  The same was true for Lord Gryffindor, whose large fiefdom kept hundreds of Muggles and wizards safe from the same invaders.  Times were dark, and in the countryside, Muggles did not shun powerful wizards so readily, but they seemed to have different attitudes in the towns.

Preparing herself to look more like a Muggle, Rowena donned a white, fitted chemise.  The sleeves were tight, and had been a bit too long so that they wrinkled at the wrists.  She had fixed that with a charm after bringing the dress home from Threadneedle Street.  The pale yellow over-tunic slipped over her chemise, and she straightened the fabric out, securing it at the waist with a gold embroidered silk girdle.  Rowena looked at herself in the mirror and decided to renew her old nursemaid's tradition, pulling her wand and providing herself with a few daisies and small roses that she attached to her hair.  The color of the tunic brought out the yellow strands in her gold tresses; bringing forth another memory of the straw-headed girl she once was on a past Midsummer's Day.

Rowena sighed.  She would have fun with Godric, but she just couldn't get rid of the sadness that haunted her.

"Rowena?" an old voice asked, as she heard her uncle knock on her door.

"Yes, come in Uncle," she answered him.

Edelbert shuffled in, his tired gray face lighting when he saw her.

"You look like a shower of gold," he commented.

"Thank you, Uncle," Rowena said, kissing him on the cheek.

"I think young Gryffindor is anxious to get to the faire.  I've come to give you a nudge out of the door.  For five years I've seen you become solemn on Midsummer's Day, and I know it must hold a sad memory for you.  Please, try to enjoy the day, hmm?"

"I will," she replied, setting her wand down on the dresser.

Edelbert quickly picked it up and placed it back in her hands.  "Hide it.  You cannot be too careful…on a day such as this, with all the drinking, Muggles can easily let things become volatile.  You both are distinguishable as nobles, but that may not be enough to keep you safe, Rowena."

She nodded, slipping the wand beneath the tunic, fitting it between the girdle and her waist.

"Good girl," Edelbert said.  "Now, not too much merriment, young lady.  You have classes in the morning."

"I know."

"I'm so very proud of you," Edelbert told her, a twinkle of tears in his eyes.  "Your father would be very proud of you.  Rowena, taking the path of the scholar is a choice you've made after both our own hearts, and it seems to me that you are going this route because it is what you want, and not for any other reason."

Rowena smiled and hugged him.  "I should go, Uncle."

"Yes," he replied.  "Watch out for Godric.  I have a feeling he'll get himself into trouble before the day is out."

She laughed and kissed Edelbert one more time before hurrying down to the shop's entrance to meet her friend.  Godric was waiting there, arms crossed with his sword now affixed in a scabbard at his waist.

His eyes widened as Rowena appeared.

"And to think I was going to complain," he said.  "I suppose I'm going to have to fend off unwelcome admirers all day."

"Who says admirers are unwelcome?" she replied, lifting a brow.

He flashed her a dimpled smile and winked a dark brown eye at her.

"To the faire, Lady Ravenclaw?" he asked, offering his arm.

"Very well, Lord Gryffindor," she answered, taking his arm as they stepped out into the brilliant summer sunlight.

The town was alive and filled with people, packed in the narrow streets all the way to the river.  Merchants were everywhere, selling food and wares; music, singing, yelling and laughter made it difficult for Rowena and Godric to even hear each other talk.  They made their way to the center of the faire, where there was a tournament being held, and nearby was a flurry of dancing and music.  A troupe of actors was performing a small play, though it was about something Rowena was not familiar with, when she had expected it to be about the Oak king.  

Pushing their way through the crowds, so Godric could get a look at the jousting and fighting, they could hear someone calling his name.  Godric spun her around.

"Do you see him?" he asked her.

"No.  Who is it?"

"It sounds like…" Godric was saying, when a young man with blond, curly hair appeared from a cluster of people.  He was smiling widely, and clad very much like Godric.  

"Tristan!" Godric laughed, embracing the young man and clapping him on the back.

"You devil!" Tristan greeted him.  "I hoped to run into you here.  How strange to find you interested in the tournament, of all things."  He eyed Rowena then and his smile got even bigger.

"Oh!" Godric caught himself.  "This is the young Lady Ravenclaw…Rowena.  She's a friend of mine.  We're starting classes tomorrow.  Rowena, this is Tristan Malfoy, the son of one of my father's vassals."

"Well, actually," Tristan said, his grayish eyes flashing a proud sparkle, "I will be making the act of homage soon, and I will also be getting married."

"What?!" Godric cried.  "Just when were you going to tell me this?  You're going to be a married man?  When?"

"At the end of the summer…both ceremonies will be held on the same day, but we're planning several days of feasting.  It's going to be memorable.  You will come, won't you?  Bring Rowena along, and any other new friends you make here.  The more, the merrier!"

"I can't believe this!" Godric was astonished.  "Tristan, you mongrel!  So, who is she?"

"A daughter of the MacFusty clan."

"From the Hebrides…breeders of Hebridean black dragons?"

"She's already on the manor, and I get the hint she was glad to get away from that place and her family.  She's a bit too dainty for that life."

"Good for you," Godric said, clapping Tristan on the back again.  "So your parents aren't opposed to a wizard marriage then?"

"I think after all this time my father has served yours and been his friend, he's learned what wizard life really is.  It is what he wants, another alliance between the Malfoys and a wizard family."

Just then, the crowd hushed a bit as someone announced the next joust, and Godric's eyes lit up.

"Godric…" Rowena started.

Tristan laughed and shook his head.

"I think I've heard them calling me," Godric announced.  "Time to trounce some Muggles…er…"

"No offence taken," Tristan replied.

Godric hurried off through the crowd, and Rowena and Tristan followed.  Most of the people moved out of their way, and they were awarded a good place to watch the joust.  It appeared Godric was going to battle another young noble man, though he looked like he had seen many real battles with the Vikings than unblemished young Godric.  She heard the crowd saying that after so many victories, no one was willing to fight the man anymore that day.  Rowena cringed.

"Don't worry," Tristan assured her.  "Godric's terribly good."

Before long, Godric had mounted a destrier and his lance was held at the ready.  He had put on some rusty armor, but gritted and put on a helmet, determination in his face. 

Still, she wished he had not been so bold.

In a moment, the joust was over, and Godric lay defeated on the ground.  Rowena found herself holding her breath and covering her mouth to stifle a cry.

"Oh," was all Tristan said.  "Come on, my lady.  We have to go mend his broken pride."

When they finally reached Godric, he was sitting by himself near the stables, looking confused.  A mixture of wonder and anger were present in his expression.

"Before you say anything," he told Rowena and Tristan when he noticed their presence, "know that this was not my fault.  Yes, I'm distraught that I lost but it was because of a girl."

"A girl?" Tristan questioned, trying to hold back a chortle.

Rowena smiled and listened.

"Just as I'm heading full speed at that monster, what do I see?  The most gorgeous red locks you would ever see, blowing in the summer breeze.  Time froze, and there she was…and then there the ground was, and my face was in it."

"Excuses," Tristan laughed.

"Did you see her?  Rowena? Tristan?  You had to have seen her!"

Rowena looked at Tristan, then they both shook their heads.

"Come on, Godric," Tristan said, pulling up the defeated warrior.  "At least you'll live to fight another day."

"And to find her…it's fate.  Though I'm probably laughable now that she saw me lose.  I've got to find her.  She's bound to be around here somewhere!"  Godric exclaimed, taking off for the crowds.

Tristan rolled his eyes.  "My lady, just so we have an understanding, this is about the fiftieth time this has happened."

Rowena laughed and hurried off with Tristan, in pursuit of Godric.

After about an hour of searching, Godric sadly gave up in defeat and they resorted to dancing and eating and drinking, and had a wonderful time as the sun set.  The sky darkened with reds and pinks, and fires and torches lighted, causing the air to fill with a smoky scent.  Tristan had found the friends he had come to town with, and since disappeared, leaving Rowena stuck with a less than sober Godric.  As night came on, she finally convinced him to return home with her, though he insisted on one more dance.  So, they moved back into the crowd as the music started, and Godric whisked her around again, both of them laughing the whole time.  She kept thinking, as she was dancing and laughing, how pleasant a day it had been and that she might be able to handle Midsummer's Day in the future, now that she had a more pleasant memory.  But then, as she danced, Rowena began to get a strange feeling that was starting to drain her happiness.  Something was calling her back to another Midsummer's memory.  Was it something she had seen?

"What?" Godric asked.  "What's wrong?"

            "I don't know," she answered, looking around.  For a moment, standing not too far away, she thought she saw a familiar face in the crowd beyond the dancers, looking right at her.  

"Rowena?" Godric's face blocked her view.  "Do you want to go home?  You look like you've seen a ghost.  Are you ill?"

"No…I…" Rowena felt uneasy and did not want to explain.  "Yes, I'd like to go home."

"Fine," he replied.  "Though I probably need you to help me home more than you need me."

They left the main area of the faire, and the closer they came to Bishopsgate Street, the more sparse the crowds and merchants became, until they walked quietly alone and stopped outside the shop.

"Oh, I'm going to have a headache tomorrow," Godric complained.

"Come in," she invited.  "You can stay here.  I'm going to get a potion for you."

"Thanks," Godric replied.

After getting him settled, Rowena returned to her apartment, changing into her nightgown.  The nightly ritual of reading was dismissed, as she climbed into bed.  Her body was a bit sore from walking all day, and it felt good to lay down in the softness of her bed.  As her head fell back on the pillow, she could smell scents from the day on her hair, mainly a gentle smokiness.  It had been a long time since she went to bed on Midsummer's Day smelling that scent on her hair.

Rowena yawned and closed her eyes, seeing immediately that face in the crowd.

In her mind, she wanted to question herself, but in her heart, she knew she had locked gazes with Salazar Slytherin.  It seemed only yesterday she had looked into those green eyes…


	5. Chapter Four

** Chapter Four**  
  
"It's really amazing, isn't it?" Godric asked.  
  
"What?" Rowena replied as they stepped through the back door of a new inn, called the Leaky Cauldron. It had recently been built, and behind it laid a street of clustered houses and a growing number of shops, all owned by wizards.  
  
"That this place is completely hidden from Muggles. Would you have ever thought of such a thing? Of such enchantments?"  
  
"Well, actually..."  
  
"Don't tell me," he laughed, rubbing his sandy hair. "It's all part of that plan you have for the resizable library shelves, growing rooms, and changing staircases? Your poor uncle will have to be confined to a small room so as not to be lost if you keep that up."  
  
"But it is fascinating, creating such spells, don't you think? I would have loved to help Master Sinistra design them. The whole process of hiding a large area from Muggles just consists of a series of charms, albeit strong and powerful ones."  
  
"Oh, of course," Godric replied, trying halfheartedly to smile. "Sinistra is so crazy about Arithmancy that he named the place Diagon Alley...diagonally...I'm just a bit worried, is all. I hate Arithmancy."  
  
"I'm quite good at it," she replied with a playful smirk. "I can tutor you, if you like, Godric."  
  
"Know-it-all," he teased, and then became grim as they stopped outside of a tall house, covered in the front by ivy. "This is the place."  
  
Candlelight flickered in the dark house beyond the small, leaded glass windows.  
  
"Ladies first," Godric invited her, when a house elf opened the door. Rowena smiled and entered first, handing her cloak to the elf. They were directed down the hall to the study, where they would begin their lessons. Rowena felt somewhat nervous as she moved through the gloomy halls of Deogol Sinistra's home. It was quite large inside, obviously charmed, though it was not very pleasant. The walls were dark, and every adornment menacing. The overall intimidation the interior caused was similar to that of Slytherin Manor. Rowena remembered visiting that place with Salazar after his mother died. Thinking of the opulent yet dark place sent a shiver down her spine and she recalled begging her father not to send Salazar back to his father's home.  
  
"Rowena, are you alright? You look ill all of a sudden."  
  
"I'm fine, Godric," Rowena answered, leaning closer. "This place is just gloomy."  
  
"I know."  
  
Candle and torchlight flickered in the hall ahead of them, flowing from the open door of the study. Rowena walked into the room first ahead of Godric, and as soon as she saw the red-haired young witch sitting at a table, she was grabbed and whisked back into the dark hall.  
  
"What?" Rowena questioned, seeing a look of desperation on Godric's face. Then, she realized what had startled him. "Is that the girl from the faire?"  
  
"Yes," he told her, breathless. "And all this time I worried she was a Muggle and that my father would kill me...I...Oh, she saw me loose to that stupid oaf! I can't go in there, Rowena."  
  
"Ah," came a gruff, commanding voice. "I see Master Gryffindor and the young Lady Ravenclaw are present. Please enter and take your seats. Miss Ravenclaw, you may sit next to Miss Hufflepuff."  
  
Rowena startled and turned to Godric with eyes wide. She mouthed... "Hufflepuff?"  
  
Godric clenched a fist and shook it, shaking his head miserably. The Hufflepuffs of the Valley and the Gryffindors of the Moors were in an ancient feud that Godric had related to Rowena only days before. Both had claims as being the first wizard family, which was a cause for rivalry since wizards were wizards. Sometime though, and somewhere, a Gryffindor by the name of Goddard absconded with the daughter of Heinrich Hufflepuff, and set the rivalry into a feud. The Gryffindors claimed that with the mixing of bloodlines, their family assumed the title of oldest.  
  
For Godric to court the daughter of a Hufflepuff was unthinkable.  
  
"This will definitely be an interesting mix of students," Sinistra said, with a smile of crooked teeth. The short warlock was older, with long black hair striped with gray. His face matched his teeth—grisly and not handsome, though he had a scholarly air to him. Rowena remembered meeting Sinistra when he visited her father, and she felt about the same about him, as she did then—intimidated and nervous, yet not so much this time as she was nearly taller than him.  
  
Godric leaned and whispered as they entered the study again. "I can't believe he accepted a Hufflepuff and a Gryffindor..."  
  
Rowena smiled politely as she came closer to the table where the Hufflepuff witch sat. She stood up to greet Rowena.  
  
"You must be Rowena Ravenclaw. I'm Helga Hufflepuff, and I'm so glad I won't be the only young woman in our class. Although, maybe it could have been to my benefit," she laughed.  
  
Rowena was stunned at how pretty Helga was, and knew then why Godric had been entranced. Her features were strong, but beautiful, and her skin was smooth and pale. Her eyes, which gave a friendly shine, were a vivid brown, with a hint of playfulness. Rowena felt a bit self-conscious, but she replied nicely. "Pleased to meet you, Helga." She turned to Godric, who stood with his face down, flushed and somewhat angry looking. Helga eyed him as well. "This is Godric Gryffindor."  
  
Helga nodded as Godric raised his head to meet her eyes. They stared at each other for a moment until they were interrupted by a voice.  
  
"Sit, if you will."  
  
Master Sinistra entered then, his black robe dragging behind him, followed by another, taller wizard. Godric and Helga took their seats but Rowena remained frozen in place. A square-built young man stood before her, with a finely shaped face and dark hair...the mature Salazar Slytherin looked back at her through his green eyes—the eyes that had haunted her since the night of the faire. Darkness lingered in his face, and sadness, but he also held himself proudly. Rowena felt confused, uncomfortable—happy and angry at the same time. What was she supposed to do? Action eluded her, and she simply looked away.  
  
"Salazar Slytherin," Sinistra introduced him. "You are in the company of Godric Gryffindor, Helga Hufflepuff, and Rowena Ravenclaw. Please, sit down." He spoke to Salazar, but then turned to Rowena who still stood. She realized his attention then took her seat quickly, feeling as though she might either cry or be sick.  
  
"I suppose I have some explaining to do," their teacher continued. Rowena focused on the old warlock and tried to think about his words and not about Salazar. "A Ravenclaw and a Slytherin? A Hufflepuff and a Gryffindor? A mad premise most would agree, though I have kept my new class a mystery to nosy wizards. Yes, family issues are present, but I am willing to try and go past this, as I hope you will be. You see, before me I see something else...something I never have before."  
  
He began to pace, looking meaningfully at each of his students. "I see the daughter of a brilliant scholar, who is brilliant in her own right. I see the son of a brave lord, who is daring and unafraid of a challenge. I see a daughter of a noble family that is loyal to the last, who is hardworking and true. I see the son of a great leader, who is intelligent and powerful. I don't see names or past...transgressions...I see the future. To have received a letter from the four of you, I could do nothing but accept each one, for I have a sure feeling that the future holds something meaningful for all of you, together. There is no doubt in my mind you may become some of the greatest wizards and witches of our time...may...your progress remains to be seen..." He glanced at Godric. "I have never had, and will never have again, a class of such potential."  
  
Rowena shifted, and without controlling herself, she turned her head slightly and met Salazar's gaze again. Her heart began to pound as she brought her eyes back to Sinistra, though she was not concentrating anymore on what he was saying. Forget past transgressions? Her father was dead. As much as it felt paralyzing to know the person who cast the spell that ended his life was sitting there in the same room with her, it felt even stranger and distressing to realize that the best friend who had betrayed her was only an arm's reach away.  
  
"So," Sinistra was saying. "We shall begin with our first lessons in Arithmancy and Transfiguration. You will return here tonight and we shall have Astronomy class..."  
  
----------  
  
A small flame flickered on each of the five candles on the table. The yellowish light illuminated two gloomy faces, as well as the concerned face of an old wizard.  
  
"Neither of you are eating anything," Edelbert commented. He set down his mug and sighed. "Rowena...Godric...Listen, Sinistra is a wise old crow. I'm sure he has a very good reason..."  
  
"Can there be a good reason?" Godric interrupted angrily. "I mean, for putting Rowena and her father's murderer together in the same room? The Hufflepuff girl...well, that's an outrage enough, but to allow that..."  
  
Rowena leapt from the table, feeling the tears coming forth that she had been holding back all day.  
  
"Rowena," Edelbert tried to speak, but she took off at a run, not stopping until she came to her bed. There, she fell down and sobbed.  
  
A sad stillness quieted the dark around her as she lie still, crying.  
  
_"Well, she seems to be maturing, Raedwald," Lord Slytherin commented, staring down at Rowena who fidgeted under the gaze of the towering, dark man. He stroked his black beard and Rowena noticed a streak of gray, as his inky black eyes seemed to size her up. "How old is she now, ten?"  
  
"Yes," Lord Ravenclaw answered, putting a soft grip on Rowena's shoulder, calming her. Being in the presence of Salazar's father always frightened her.  
  
"She looks older, and is quite intelligent as you say..."  
  
"We are not getting into this discussion again, Fyren...run along, Rowena. We have business," Lord Ravenclaw spoke sternly. She nodded and moved away into the crowded room of witches and wizards gathered for a Yule celebration. She heard her father say, "We compromised with fourteen, and I do not..."  
  
Rowena moved about, smiling at some familiar faces. Most of the wizards and witches present were involved with the Wizard's Council, of which her father had once been the Chief, in the position Lord Slytherin now held. A few of their children were present, though most she did not associate with out of shyness. The two young dark-haired children of Lord and Lady Black hung back in the shadows, watching the larger people mill about. Rowena remembered the time she had met Salazar, and everyone seemed so tall. Now, she had grown taller and wore witch's robes instead of a girl's dress. She wondered what Lord Slytherin had meant about her maturing. Sure, she had grown taller and her body had begun to change in places, but she was still a stick of a girl and had a head of straw yellow hair. Tonight, it was decorated and prettier than usual, but she still felt like the same plain Rowena she had always been. Lord Slytherin's words had made her feel uncomfortable.  
  
"There you are," she heard Salazar's voice. He was leaning against the wall with his arms folded. "I was getting bored. What was my father talking to you about?"  
  
"I don't really know. He wanted to know how old I was or something, and said I looked older than ten."  
  
Salazar shot a sharp look in his father's direction.  
  
"What?" she questioned him.  
  
"It's nothing," he replied, his face softening into a smile. He stood up straight, only about a foot taller than her, as his growth spurt had paused and hers had begun. "Come on, I want to give you your present."  
  
"But presents aren't until tomorrow night," Rowena said. "Father said I can't give you yours..."  
  
"It's alright, Rowena. No one said I couldn't give you an extra early present," he replied and took her hand. "Let's go."  
  
They hurried through the castle and out into the December night. A light snow was falling, and the air was soft and cold. Rowena was glad he was leading her out to the old oak tree, away from all the properness of her parents' party. They climbed up and sat down, looking out at the Loch that was still and black beneath the white snowfall. Salazar pulled out his wand.  
  
"Lumos," he spoke as his breath made a white fog, and a soft light brightened the air around them. "Are you cold, Rowena?" Salazar asked.  
  
Rowena shivered a bit. "I'm fine."  
  
Salazar got quiet and stared off toward the still waters before them, contemplating. Rowena remembered he had looked so lost in thought, as he did then, a great deal after his mother had died.  
  
"I have something I want to give you, Rowena. It's very special, and I was supposed to wait longer, but I can't. I just feel like I want to give it to you now, as a Yule present."  
  
Rowena blinked and watched as he reached into his pocket. When he took his hand out, it was closed. Slowly, he opened his hand and Rowena saw a beautiful silver ring, sparkling in the magical light from Salazar's wand. An open cut swirl of silver, tipped on both sides with tiny emerald leaves, surrounded an oval shaped glittering opal.  
  
"It was my mother's," Salazar explained. "The opal was her birthstone, and she always wore this ring. Her mother gave it to her on her thirteenth birthday, and she wanted me to give it to you. She always liked to think of you as a daughter, Rowena..."  
  
Salazar's eyes welled with tears then, gleaming like the tiny emerald leaves on the ring.  
  
"I just couldn't wait until your thirteenth birthday...and anyway your mother was so cruel yesterday, that I felt..." Salazar paused. "Here, let me put it on you."  
  
Rowena held out her right hand, and Salazar slipped the ring onto her finger. At first it was too large, then it seemed to fit.  
  
"It is charmed," he explained. "Do you like it?"  
  
"Salazar, it's beautiful," Rowena answered, still astonished. "Your mother really thought about me...like a daughter?"  
  
"She loved you, and she also knew that..." he stopped and was quiet, flicking his hair from his eyes.  
  
"Knew what, Salazar? What?"  
  
"That...we would always be friends," he replied softly, and pulled her close so that her head rested against his neck. "That you are my dear heart."  
  
Rowena brought her arm around him and squeezed him. "I love you," she told him. Some snow had begun to escape the trap of the branches and was falling on them, and Rowena could feel the cold frozen drops melt as they touched her face._  
  
"Rowena..."  
  
The room was completely dark, as a voice called to her from the door.  
  
"You really ought to stop with the shifting rooms. A wizard can get confused...Lumos!"  
  
A white light spilled in through the door as it creaked on its hinges. Rowena rolled over on her bed and sat up to see Godric enter, looking somewhat out of place.  
  
"I know I shouldn't be in here," he said with an uncomfortable laugh, "but I had to come and see if you were alright."  
  
She wiped her eyes, feeling the stickiness left on her face from crying. In the light from Godric's wand, Rowena gazed at the opal ring on her finger.  
  
"He gave this to me," she said, her voice quavering. "It was his mother's ring, and she wanted him to give it to me on my thirteenth birthday, but he couldn't wait. I suppose it was good thinking on his part, as he wasn't here for my thirteenth birthday."  
  
"Rowena..." Godric said, his voice cracking. He sat down next to her.  
  
"I can't go back to class tonight. I can't face him again, Godric. How do you talk to someone you loved who betrayed you so terribly?"  
  
"To be honest, I don't know," Godric answered her. "I'm not really sure what advice to give you, but I think you need to be braver than this. Come to class with me—don't give up this opportunity because of Slytherin. Look, maybe it's easier for me to say this because I'm not in your position, but it seems to me that the right thing to do is to at least give him a chance to explain things to you. Maybe you'll be able to restore some of your friendship."  
  
"I don't think...I don't think I can just..."  
  
"Rowena, I'm not saying you should go rushing right up to him as soon as we get there. I'm saying, just let time do some mending and see what happens. I'm your friend, and I'll be right there for you if things get...sticky. I promise, and to show you that I'm in this class with you, I will try to get along with Helga Hufflepuff. Does that sound agreeable?"  
  
Rowena nodded.  
  
"I think old Sinistra was right," Godric spoke clearly, standing and helping Rowena to her feet, while holding his glowing wand to light the room. "Given some more time, I think we can all learn a lot from each other. I don't know if I see a future for the four of us in a _together_ sense as he does, but there's some potential. We are all above average, I should say...well, Sinistra did give _me_ the eye."  
  
Rowena smiled at Godric. "I think you're a lot wiser than you let on, Godric. You're a good friend."  
  
"Come on," he said, tugging her. "We're going to be late for the astronomy lesson if we don't hurry. Now, you're going to need to show me how to make it downstairs. Is there a method to this madness you've created?"  
  
Rowena laughed and led him, as Godric's wand lit their way.  
  
---------------------- _**Author Notes**_  
  
OK, since it was brought up, here is a bit on the history I'm working with for "A Poison Tree." If you don't care about all the nitpickiness of setting, skip this! If you read on, you have been warned...it may get very much like Binns's class!  
  
First of all, YES, I LOVE the book Faeries by Brian Froud! It's a great gathering of old fairy folklore, and besides loving every single bit of art in it, and enjoying all the little "notes," I find it's a great reference for writing fantasy because it contains a condensed version of so many myths, legends, and old wives' tales about fairies that are scattered out around the Europe. If you've read the book, you'll recognize Rowena's bluebell fairy! That scene was also inspired by a picture of a hillside in Scotland, near where I imagine Rowena's home being (Glencoe/Loch Leven), totally covered in bluebells. Beautiful!  
  
According to the Sorting Hat, and the HP Lexicon, the founders came from different places in Britain.  
  
Rowena—Glen, probably Glencoe in Scotland or somewhere around there Godric—Moor, probably North Yorkshire or Dartmoor in Devon Helga—Valley, probably somewhere in Wales Salazar—Fen, probably East Anglia, like Norfolk  
  
Sure, they came from the four corners, really, but they had to meet at some point before founding Hogwarts. In my imagination, they were good friends for a while before founding the school—Rowena and Salazar having been friends for quite a while as their parents were friends, as you probably could tell from the "party scene"—Lord Ravenclaw being the famous scholar, and Lord Slytherin being the Chief of the "Wizards Council" (the council was talked about in FB, QA, HPL). You know how those big "wizarding" families shmooze...well, mostly in fandom anyway.  
  
According to the Lexicon, Hogwarts is not in England actually, but Scotland (possibly north of Edinburgh). I'll quote their source...HPfGU—"A number of facts from the books point to Scotland, a bit north of Edinburgh, and possibly closer to Aberdeen. The primary routes to Scotland from London depart from King's Cross. You cannot go more than five hours from London on a steam train in a consistent direction, and stay on dry land, without going into Scotland."  
  
I think it is interesting that, of all the founders, Hogwarts is closest to Rowena's old home. There will be more about that to come in the fic as to my take on it.  
  
Now, as to the setting...this is where it gets a bit sketchy at best as far as the wizarding world goes. I'm taking some liberties with Diagon Alley and it's founding/creation, as well as some other things. Yet, as far as the historical Muggle setting goes, I'm guessing (as Binns said in 1992/93) it was around 1000 years ago, so probably in the later 900's when Hogwarts was founded. So, this is the Anglo-Saxon time when the land of England was divided into Wessex, Mercia, and East Anglia—you know, with the Viking raids and Ethelred the Unready, Cnute, Harold, yada yada—getting into Feudalism and stuff. London was called everything from Lundenwic to Lundenberg. After some thought, and realization that London is shorter than Lundenwic, I'm changing it to just London. Meh. I'm really not going to get into much of the historical time period happenings because 1) It's about wizards, and in my opinion, besides maybe the Gryffindors, the other characters could really care less as they're trying to keep away from Muggles. 2) It's a romance, not a historical drama. 3) One of the subjects I teach is history that involves all that stuff, and I really don't want to think about it at home.  
  
It is helpful to know the time setting, and know that Scotland, despite a lot of inconsistency, was mainly the country then as it is today, border- wise.  
  
So yes, the founders did all come from different places—but they HAD to meet sometime before they built Hogwarts far away from the prying eyes of Muggles. This is the story about HOW they met and consequently founded Hogwarts. So, with the parental friendship, the relationship between Rowena and Salazar began...and soon all founders will come together for something they love best—learning. Of course, boundaries themselves are not so important in the wizarding world, as they can just Apparate wherever they want to go—which was one reason Salazar stayed with the Ravenclaws over the summers until he could Apparate. From Fen to Glen with a swish of a cloak! Though, that also had some basis in the feudal traditions of sending children to the homes of other nobles to get their education in either being knights or ladies.  
  
OK!!!!!! Now that the lesson is over class...some thank-ees!  
  
**Sona and Pyracantha-**- ::glomps:: Thanks for sticking around, reading and commenting!  
  
**Cennet**—Yes, I've thought a lot about the world without Hogwarts and how it's kind of the families that matter. You ROCK! Thanks for the lovely replies, and I'm glad you posted "Tales of the Warrior-Star" your awesome Bella fic. It is an A!  
  
**Mm42**—Hi! Thanks for joining in...you prompted me to do some explaining, which I've been putting off. I hope it made sense, even though I tend to distort a few things here and there in the story. Again, I say meh! 'Tis just a fanfic. Glad you find the plot to your liking...I try. As for the grammar, I hope I'm pretty good at it, because though I do teach history, I am primarily an English teacher. So, yeah...it's grammAr, not grammEr. Hehe. You get a B. :P  
  
**Risa **and **Crazy**, thanks for joining and I hope you read more. I changed it to allow anonymous reviews, though I hope I don't get nutters—LOL OMG!!!!!1111!!!!!.  
  
**Thanks for all the reviews and sorry it took so long!**


	6. Chapter Five

_**A Poison Tree**_  
Chapter Five

"I had a dream once, a few years ago," Rowena said softly, breaking a long silence. She glanced up at the starry night sky, and then turned to Godric at her side. A balmy air gently brushed his sandy hair.

"And?" he replied with a smile.

"About him."

She noticed recognition in his eyes--he realized it had to do with Salazar Slytherin, and his smile faded. They were on their way to the evening Astronomy class, and she would have to face him again.

Rowena wondered why that strange dream had surfaced, long forgotten until that night. She took a deep breath and began to tell the story.

"I dreamt that I was at home, at Cnoc Liath in the Glen. My parents were away and I was alone. For a while, I sat on the silvery shore of the Loch on a summer day, but then I heard crying. It was the villagers, mourning the loss of a child--a little girl had disappeared in the forest. Elfrida, my nursemaid grabbed me and told me that it was a Dark Wizard who had taken the Muggle girl, deep into the heart of the forest to a castle there."

"I suppose they wanted you to rescue her?" Godric asked.

"Yes. I was afraid. I remember looking at the forest and it seemed to darken and grow larger, and I knew that I had to go after her. Then, a hand was on my shoulder and it was Salazar! He said that he was there to help me as a friend, and we would go together to rescue the girl. So, I began to walk and he followed, and we headed into the forest. The darkness was thick, more than usual in that forest. Despite all the times we had played there and it was pleasant, this time it felt evil and gloomy. It felt like midnight even though it was still day, and there were no sounds but the wind and water. That's another thing that was strange, as the little brook was instead a large, black river."

"Sounds like the stuff of a nightmare," Godric commented. "Like the River Styx in the underworld."

"In a way, maybe it was. I remember feeling very frightened, but Salazar and I tried hard to be brave. After a time walking, we found a raft in the river and took it. Salazar said that it would take us to the castle--that the wizard had left it there because he knew we were coming. So, we floated downstream and it got even darker as night came. At one point, there was a break in the trees and I could see the stars, and I felt a warning in my heart to fly away right then. I felt like I could have flown away if I had tried hard enough."

"Did you?"

"No. He told me that it was all right, as though he knew the fear in my heart. I believed my friend and I stayed. When we came to the castle, it was frightening--a monstrous fortress of black rock rose up from the forest, and there were giant carvings of serpent heads with their mouths open with sharp, stone fangs exposed. Salazar took my hand and he led us up to the portcullis, and then it opened. I reached for my wand, to have it ready in case the wizard was waiting to attack us--but it was gone. In fact, I realized I had forgotten my wand all together. I was shaking as we went further, through a moonlit garden and then into a dark chamber. We stopped in the center and it was black--everything was in darkness--and then torches lit with green flame, and I saw Salazar looking at me but he was...different..."

Rowena paused, choosing to keep that detail to herself--the difference between Salazar's eyes before and after that..._moment_. She knew the dream reflected that change between the Salazar she knew and the one she didn't.

"...he was darker, and he looked angry in the green light, even though he was smiling. He asked me if I was afraid, and I nodded. He told me that the Dark Wizard was there, and I jumped back, looking all around for him, but we were the only two people in the room. Then, he took my arms, pulling me close, looked into my eyes and said, '_It's me_.'" Rowena glanced at Godric as she finished the tale, and he shook his head and thought quietly about it. She looked away and blushed, knowing she neglected to tell him one thing--he had kissed her. "That was the moment I woke up."

"I guess the little Muggle girl was done for?" Godric laughed.

"Well, you know how dreams change course. I woke up too soon for that, anyway," she replied as they made their way to the end of the deserted alleyway. When they stopped at the ivy covered wall, Godric stepped forward first and held the greenery aside, as Rowena stepped through the magical barrier. He followed after immediately, and Godric spoke again as they continued down Diagon Alley.

"The dream makes sense, in how you feel about Slytherin--at first he was your friend, and then he deceived you and became your enemy."

"I know, Godric," Rowena said sadly. "As much as I try and sort things out, I think that inside I will feel that way--that he deceived me and that he is my enemy."

"Yes, but you don't know that, Rowena," Godric told her.

Sinistra's house was in plain view, and Rowena began to feel her heart beating faster, and her palms began to sweat. The memory of the dream and the uneasy feelings of the day, and the thought of having to look into his eyes made her panic. "I can't do this," she informed Godric, stopping in the street. She shook her head. "I can't."

"Rowena," Godric whispered, taking her elbow gently as a few passing magical folk began to look. "We talked about this already tonight. It's not going to be easy, but I'm here for you as a friend. If you're going to take Sinistra's classes, you're going to have to face Slytherin. He was your friend once. Can't you at least try to look at him that way? You don't even have to speak to him. Just give it time."

Master Sinistra was atop his house, setting up some astronomical devices with Helga Hufflepuff. The red headed girl noticed Rowena and waved, though Rowena didn't wave back. She couldn't move as she stared at the place she was supposed to go, and tried desperately to make a decision. Helga stopped waving and began to study the pair of students standing below.

"I can't," Rowena decided, her eyes welling with tears. "I'm sorry, Godric. You go ahead. I...I have to go!"

Pulling her elbow from Godric's light grasp, she took off at a run and didn't stop until she was on the other side of the barrier. She stopped for a moment and caught her breath, feeling some relief mixed with disappointment in herself. However, she felt at this moment that disappointment was better than the alternative. After waiting for a moment to see if Godric had followed, she left for home alone.

The streets were emptying, candlelight brightening the wind holes and scarce glass windows of homes and shops, as moths and other insects fluttered around the frames. Watching and listening, it never ceased to amaze Rowena at how crudely Muggles existed in their world without magic. She let her mind wander there, and let herself become engrossed in watching the happenings around her. At least it was enough to push other thoughts from her mind--thoughts about Salazar.

The clang of a bell echoed from the river, catching her attention, and Rowena decided to go and think by the water instead of returning home early and having to answer questions. She walked through the dark streets, keeping her fingertips touched to her wand that was in the pocket of her linen dress, hidden under her blue tunic. After a long time walking, she came to Ebgate on the bank of the river, and climbed out onto the bridge above the water gate. The nearby oyster market was being cleaned and emptied, and she listened to the merchants talking as one by one they faded away. The moonlight shone down on the moving blackness of the Thames, and a few lanterns shone on the nearby massive wooden structure of the London Bridge. The way the Thames looked at night reminded her of the Loch at home in the Glen, though there was no silvery strand, nor a fair green isle in the distance. Lambethmoor was a poor substitute for the beautiful countryside that she missed.

"You don't fit in this crowded, filthy place among Muggles," a voice spoke quietly behind her, startling Rowena.

She whirled to see Salazar Slytherin stepping onto the little arcing bridge. The memory of the Loch and strand dwelled in her fore thoughts, more so then, with a link to that distant home standing before her.

"I...do...miss it," she spoke warily; feeling her heart pounding so fiercely that she could scarcely breathe.

"I suppose you find it my fault that you are here." His eyes were dark as he spoke.

"N-No," Rowena replied, feeling stretched between the urge to run away and the urge to linger. His eyes roamed down to notice the opal ring on her finger. She jerked her hand in response. This was the very situation she had tried to flee from by abandoning the evening class. Her face grew hotter by the second, so much that she began to feel light headed. Then, through all her jumbled emotions, a memory came to her. She saw Salazar that day in the field of bluebells, a darkening sky behind him. She saw his face--utter horror, indescribable sadness--a face full of dark tragedy.

"Rowena..."

Before he could manage another word, Rowena flew to him, compelled by her emotions. She wrapped her arms around his neck as she had done a thousand times. He felt different, yet he felt the same. Circling his arms around her waist, he pulled her close and she could feel and hear his deep sigh. Letting go of her reservations, Rowena plunged herself into the past and the present. She breathed him, touched him, remembering him and learning him. As feelings overwhelmed her, she began to cry. Rowena could feel Salazar experiencing her again--feeling her hair, breathing her in, and holding her tight.

Words would come later, she knew; for that moment, everything was much simpler.

A bell tolled, and a lantern swayed on the prow of a passing craft though it was blurry in her teary vision. She thought of the old bell in the small church echoing through the Glen, and the lights of the fairies near the shore; blurred, the dark of Lambethmoor seemed like the little isle in the Loch. Yet none of those things could compare to holding Salazar again in an embrace. Then, she truly felt at home.

Rowena could tell night was turning to morning by the subtle brightening of light coming through her window. She was lying in bed, tossing and turning. Even though she was exhausted, sleep would not come. Fierce emotions kept causing her eyes to dart open, making her stir beneath the bed covers and feel as though she just might burst into a thousand pieces.

All at once she was feeling relief, joy, and a tinge of fear, mixed with an onslaught of memories. As if the whole of it was coursing through her veins, she tossed herself, trying to set it free. Yet, with only a moment of quiet rest, the feelings and thoughts would come back again. And so the night continued for her into the early morning hours.

Seeing Salazar again caused Rowena's emotions to stir, for sure, but touching him again and being so close to him had brought a near madness to her. It made her remember. As she turned again onto her side, she ran her fingers over the opal ring. Did he remember? Rowena kept dwelling on it, hopelessly trying to recall if his eyes had shown it; but it was no use, as the whole reuniting had happened so fast. It was a fuzzy mess of feelings and tears and memory, as her past and present had come together.

Still, she wondered, did he remember that night?

_"Hurry up, Rowena!"_

_"Ssh! She'll hear you. If she finds out I'm out here..." Rowena whispered hurriedly, emerging from within a tangled shrub. Her bare feet dug into the cold, silvery sand. She clutched her wand tightly._

_"You're not afraid of punishment," Salazar said with a tricky grin. "You're afraid of The Thing."_

_"No I am not," Rowena said defiantly, though a bit too hastily to mask her uncertainty. "There is no such thing as...The...Thing." She wasn't sure what was more unnerving--the mysterious entity rumored to dwell on the island in the Loch, or Salazar in one of his more intrepid moods. Rowena looked direly at the island--a rocky, hilly, dark mass of dense forest. On a sunny, summer day with no darkness in sight, it was a fun place to romp. On a moonlit night, however, it sent a chill down her spine to think of setting foot on its shore._

_Salazar laughed and shook his head. "You know, it eats eleven year-old girls, I hear."_

_"More like stupid boys--" Rowena was retorting, when a strange cry came from the direction of the island. Her eyes went wide and she froze, pulling her robe and nightdress closer around her frame. She shivered. _

_Salazar, who had been fiddling with a small dinghy, stood up straight and glanced toward the source of the cry. Upon his face lit an undaunted excitement._

_"Get in, and hurry. The Thing only comes when there's a full moon."_

_Well, she couldn't just stand on the shore and watch Salazar sail away to adventure without her. Rowena sighed, and against her better judgment, scrambled into the boat. It wobbled, and Salazar then pushed it from the sand into the frigid, black water. Jumping in quickly, he cast a charm on the boat by tapping his wand on the bow. Quietly, the little boat began slowly cutting through the still water, urged on by Salazar's magic._

_"It isn't...I mean, I just don't think..." Rowena whimpered as the island began to grow larger. The shadowy forms of the island's trees were outlined then, not just a dark mass in the distance._

_Salazar looked at her over his shoulder, flipping his dark hair from his face. His eyes were intense, but he smiled. Then, he turned his gaze back around, keeping an eye on the island. Rowena slumped down, crossing her arms. She watched him leaning up solidly at the bow, his hair blowing a little, streaked with light. The skin on his hands and neck looked pale in the bright moonlight._

_"Salazar," she pleaded. The island was close. Rowena could see a small strip of sand._

_"Ssh!" he quieted her, turning around again. "Is it Kay or Rowena that's in this boat with me? And where are your shoes?"_

_"I didn't think we'd actually go," she told him. "And I am not scared, thank you." Rowena plucked up, having been compared to Kay. A change in the wind made that boy nervous, and she wasn't about to take his title of coward._

_"Good. Though, you should be," Salazar smiled slyly, just as the boat ran upon the shore. He stood up and swung himself up over the side of the boat, and landed on the sand. Scanning the tree line, he whirled around and held his hand out to Rowena. Clutching her wand in one hand, and grasping his hand with the other, Rowena gritted her teeth and leapt out of the boat. The sand was damp and freezing beneath her feet. The island was eerily silent. Salazar pulled his wand from within his cloak._

_"Come on, and stay close to me. I'm sure The Thing isn't the only creature to worry about out here."_

_Rowena whimpered again, hurrying along at Salazar's heels as he headed into the dark woods. He appeared to be going in the direction a small rock face that rose up from the trees. Another strange cry drifted in the night, this time much louder, as they were close to the source. "It sounds like a cooing," Rowena told herself. "The Thing cannot be all that vicious of a monster if it coos." Yet, her self-assuring was not doing much to stop her shaking. Salazar was still smiling, nearly laughing when he saw her so scared. She kept wondering how he could not be even the slightest bit nervous._

_"I'll climb up first," Salazar whispered, pointing to the veiny wall of rock that rose about twenty feet above them. They had climbed it before, but in the daylight. Rowena wondered if her trembling hands would be able to get a good hold on anything. "Then, I'll wait for you and pull you up at the top."_

_She watched him climb, finding holds and crevices along the way. When he reached the top, he waved his hand, signaling her to come. For a moment, she felt something behind her in the darkness of the woods. She turned around timidly and looked. All was dark and quiet. Then, she heard a rustle and a twig snap. Rowena sucked in a breath, then rushed to the rock face to begin climbing as though The Thing was at her heels. Without shoes, she was able to wriggle her toes into smaller cracks, enabling her to climb steadily and quickly. Finally nearing the top, Salazar reached out and grabbed hold of her arm, pulling her up._

_"That was fast, Rowena."_

_She was panting. "I heard something behind me. I thought it might be the--"_

_Another softer coo came this time, and Salazar stood up, scanning for the direction of the sound. "I think it's this way, to the east," he said, pointing. He smiled, but this time his smile was not bold or tricky. He took Rowena's hand and lifted her to her feet. "Let's hurry, but we cannot make any noise. It's very shy."_

_"A--All right," Rowena answered, letting Salazar lead her on. They moved quietly through the woods, negotiating around thick undergrowth and mossy rocks. The ground was prickly in some places, and trying carefully not to step too hard and hurt her feet, she ran into a rock, stubbing her toes. She stopped, biting her lip to stifle a cry, and hopped on one foot. Salazar came around, laughing silently, and then bent down. He motioned for her to climb on his back. Rowena wrapped her arms around his neck, and Salazar stood up. She then crossed her legs around his waist._

_Salazar laughed a bit uncomfortably. "You're heavier than you used to be," he whispered._

_"Well, I have grown like a weed," Rowena whispered back, her mouth close to his ear. They both laughed, as Rowena had imitated Lady Ravenclaw's comment the week before, though with a whole lot less disdain in the word, "weed."_

_"Your wand is poking my neck," Salazar said. "Put it in your pocket."_

_"I can't reach."_

_"Here, let me hold it then."_

_He slipped it from her hand and tucked it away in his cloak. "Let's go."_

_They moved closer to the sound, as the coo reached them again. Up ahead, there appeared to be a clearing after a dense cluster of thicket and undergrowth. Silvery moonlight was streaming down beyond, and there was a movement._

_Salazar slowed down, then stopped and squatted down behind the dense growth. Rowena climbed off his back and hunched along side him. He put a finger to his lips before carefully parting a bit of the bushes in front of them. Rowena pressed her cheek against his, trying to see through the small opening._

_In the bright light of the full moon, an awkwardly spindly creature was dancing on its hind legs. The Thing had smooth, gray skin, and was no bigger than a large dog. It had enormous round eyes on top of its head that glistened in the moonlight. Strangest though, was it's four large disc-like feet that looked like dinner plates. The dance was strange and rhythmic, captivating Rowena. She had never seen anything quite so alien._

_Salazar moved his head back a bit, so that his mouth was near her ear. "Mooncalf," he whispered._

_So Salazar had known all along! Rowena felt a bit hot from it, as he had led her to believe there was a vicious girl-eating monster on the island. Yet, it was such a unique sight, that she quickly forgot the teasing. The mooncalf stopped dancing for a moment, setting its fore legs on the rocky grass in the clearing. It reared its gray head and let out another coo. This time, the coo was returned. Was there another? Emerging from a burrow in the ground, another smooth skinned mooncalf came into the clearing, though it was a bit smaller than the other. Salazar pushed a little closer into the opening, terribly interested in the mysterious mooncalves. Rowena backed away some, allowing him room. That was when she heard something else. Was it a cackle? She sat up and looked into the tangle of growth behind and around them. Salazar did not appear to hear it. At first, having just seen a mooncalf rise from its burrow, her thought was that another one was rising, obviously stuck in the thicket. She turned on her knees and began to crawl to investigate. _

_Then, she heard the cackle again. In this instance though, all her thoughts seemed to evaporate. She was simply drawn to the sound, as she crawled deeper and deeper into the dark mass of vines and tangles._

_"Rowena!" came a harsh whisper. Salazar was looking for her. "Rowena!" He sounded panicked. She heard him rustling the undergrowth, and came to her senses. What was she doing? She crawled forward a bit, and then, the ground gave way and she was falling. Rowena screamed, and hit a hard dirt floor, her legs crumbling beneath her. A sharp pain began to pulse in he right ankle. She was in a small hole about seven feet from the surface, and it seemed to lead into a cave. Rowena hunched down in the small space and relieved the pressure on her ankle. Leaves and sticks were under her. She realized she had fallen through a trap when the high-pitched cackling began again; this time, it was right next to her. Stunned, she tried to move and reached for her wand. Salazar had it! She clambered at the dirt wall of the hole she had fallen into, but she couldn't stand up. Rowena felt something near, and turned around slowly. A bit of moonlight shone down, enough to reveal a hideous face that emerged from the darkness of the cave--a blackish-green, elfish creature with large eyes, and a huge mouth baring rows of pointy teeth. An erkling! It cackled again, and she kicked at it with her uninjured leg. The erkling vanished back into the darkness, and there was a frightening growl. Then, it sprang viciously at her. She screamed again as its long fingers and sharp nails clawed at her. Rowena held out her hands, pushing away at the thing, trying to keep its dangerous mouth from reaching her neck, which it was apparently aiming for. The hole was so small; she couldn't maneuver around enough to stand up. The erkling seemed to be only about three feet tall, and she might have subdued it elsewhere, but there just wasn't enough room in the monster's trap for her to get a good swing or a kick at it. _

_"Rowena!" she heard Salazar shouting frantically. "Where are you?"_

_She scrambled, screaming, "Down here!"_

_But her pause was enough for the erkling to rear back and strike the side of her head. She slumped over, into blackness._

_"Rowena!" an echoing shout made her open her eyes. A jet of red light hit the dirt wall above the low entrance to the cave leading from the trap. It showered earth down on her. She was aware then that something had a hold of her ankles and was dragging her into the darkness. The pain was excruciating where the erkling yanked on her injured ankle, and she let out a painful yell._

_"Rowena!"_

_She reached her arms up and screamed. "Help me!"_

_"Catch!" Salazar cried, throwing her wand down the hole. She missed it, but kicked her good leg enough to loosen the erkling's grip so that she could twist and grab the wand. The erkling sprung forward to attack her again, but Rowena raised her wand so it pointed between the creature's wild eyes._

_"Impedimenta!" she yelled, and knocked the erkling back. Rowena attempted to get to her feet, but cried out in pain._

_"My ankle! I think it's broken!"_

_"Hold on," Salazar assured her. He waved his wand and conjured a rope, and it appeared with a bang. Lowering it, he steadied himself. "Grab on and I'll pull you up."_

_Rowena put her wand between her teeth and held on to the rope the best she could. There was a growl in the cave._

_"Hurry!" she cried. Salazar gave a few great heaves and pulled Rowena to the surface. When most of her weight was on the ground, he dropped the rope and fell to his knees, dragging her the rest of the way out. As soon as Rowena sat up, Salazar had a hold of her shoulders and shook her._

_"I told you to stay close to me," he said angrily. "You could be that thing's dinner right now, Rowena!"_

_She bit her lip, and tears started to fall down her cheeks. She was shaking from the ordeal. "I'm s-sorry S-Salazar," she sobbed._

_He loosened his grip and gathered her to his chest, and she cried. _

_"I'm sorry," he apologized, wrapping his arms tightly around her. They sat together for a little while, until Rowena calmed down. "We should get back. Your ankle?"_

_"It hurts," Rowena replied, sitting up and wiping her tears with the sleeve of her robe. _

_"I'll carry you. Then, I can lower you down over the rock," Salazar said, pulling her up and then scooping her into his arms. He set his jaw seriously._

_"The mooncalves?" she questioned, as Salazar began walking back toward the direction of the boat. _

_"We scared them off, I'm sure. This was foolish. I'm not sure of the proper spell for your ankle. We'll have to go to Elfrida."_

_"We can't!" Rowena argued. "You aren't supposed to be here! I'm restricted to my room! Father is going to whip me when he comes back from London, if my mother doesn't kill me first. Just try something!"_

_"I can't. I might end up making your ankle disappear altogether," he explained, slowing down to negotiate through a dense crop of trees._

_Rowena despaired. Only a week before, following the weed comment, Lady Ravenclaw had managed to convince her husband with cold hard facts that Rowena was no longer a "little girl" as she existed in his view of things. Furthermore, her mother had gotten Lord Ravenclaw to agree that Salazar and Rowena should be chaperoned, if together at all. Rowena knew that it was just her mother's attempt at making her unhappy. Still, her father had maintained that in a few months, Salazar would be sixteen, and a young man with responsibilities, so it made sense for them to start spending less time together. The situation was worsened by the fact Lord Ravenclaw was gone to London for several days, and there was no reason for Salazar to be at Cnoc Liath in the first place, as lessons were canceled. They were going to be in serious trouble. Rowena had grown to learn, though, that consequences were not always on Salazar's mind; he had a penchant for disregarding rules. She had also learned that, when someone exercised power over him, he tended to go against them in any way possible. Was this one of those times? She looked up at him. His face was serious and she could tell he was thinking about a way around the mess they were sure to cause._

_When they finally reached the boat, after a struggle getting Rowena back down over the rock face, Salazar set her in gently and pushed the boat into the Loch with a running start. He leapt in, and the dinghy rocked a little before his charm set it on a steady course for the opposite shore._

_"We could go to the library," Rowena suggested. "Maybe there's a book there with the proper spell..."_

_She let her voice drift off. Salazar only nodded and watched the approaching shore. Rowena, having finally gotten a chance to lie still, was starting to feel the throbbing pain in her ankle. She was also beginning to feel a bit ill, so she leaned back and closed her eyes for a while. Trying to focus on the soft sounds of the boat gliding through the water, and taking deep breaths, Rowena was able to distance herself from the pain and nausea, but it was persistent. _

_"Is that Kay?" Salazar asked. "And that other boy--the Muggle--what's his name? Rowena?"_

_Rowena felt his hands on her, pulling her up. "You look pale," he said. "Rowena?"_

_She opened her eyes. "I don't feel so good. My ankle hurts a lot."_

_"Well, we're in luck. Kay can help me carry you to the village. I'm sure the healer can mend it in a minute."_

_"Won't she tell?" Rowena asked._

_Salazar reached under his cloak and pulled out a small sack of coins, which he jingled. "No."_

_"Oh."_

_The boat was approaching the silvery strand, and Rowena could see Kay a tow-headed village boy standing there waiting._

_Kay looked worried. "You went there? Tonight?" he badgered them, as soon as the dinghy ran up into the sand. "The Thing? Under a full moon?"_

_"It nearly ate me," Rowena said casually, and laughed at Kay's shocked expression. "My ankle's broken."_

_"You're going to help me take her to the healer," Salazar said in a commanding voice. With Salazar, there was never any guessing who was the nobility. He helped her out of the boat, and Kay was there, grasping her other arm._

_"Nab," Kay said to the boy standing nearby, who watched with wide eyes. "Go and wake Erskina."_

_The boy took off at a run for the village. Salazar and Kay supported Rowena as they made the trek into the village. The roads were full of ruts, which they had to lift her over. Kay's one complaint of a sore shoulder was silenced by a serious glare from Salazar. The village was quiet, marked only with the sounds of a few animals in their pens. Erskina's hut was lit, and the boy came running out as they approached._

_"Run along, you two," came a gruff voice from the hut. Erskina poked her head out, revealing her wild hair. Rowena wondered when the last time was she had washed it. The healer shooed Kay and Nab, and the pair took off into the night. Salazar picked up Rowena and entered the smoky hut, laying Rowena down on a mat before the small fire._

_"Broken ankle, eh?" she asked Rowena. "Can't Elfrida mend this, Lady?"_

_"No, she'll tell my--"_

_"We're fully prepared to pay you well, Erskina," Salazar interrupted. "For your healing and for your keeping a secret." He pulled out his coin pouch and bargained with the healer. When they finished the money exchange, Erskina turned to Rowena and laughed. _

_"Out and about against the rules. I remember those days. Hold still, then." She pointed her wand at Rowena's ankle and said a quick spell. A warm glow surrounded her skin, and the pain went away._

_Erskina stood up and went to a cluttered shelf, taking a wooden flask. Then, she poured its green contents into a cup. "Here. Drink this. It'll make you feel a bit better all over."_

_Rowena made a sour face and put the flask to her lips. She downed the potion quickly, surprised to find it tasted like honey._

_"Thank you," Rowena said, moving to stand up. Salazar helped her to her feet, and took hold of her hand as they left the healer's hut._

_"I'll walk you to the orchard, and then you can go home on your own," Salazar suggested as they left the village grounds. Salazar looked at her for a long moment, and squeezed her hand. They walked without speaking for a long time. The moonlight was still bright, and the fall night cool. In the orchard, Salazar stopped and Rowena noticed he looked nervous and a bit sad. He took her hand and touched the opal ring._

_"Rowena..."_

_She felt a strange, fluttery feeling in her stomach. "W--What?"_

_"I would never have forgiven myself if you had been eaten by an erkling. No. That's not it exactly. I...I would be lost if something happened to you."_

_"Salazar?"_

_He seemed to tremble a little bit, as he came closer. They were the closest in height they had ever been, and Rowena laid her head against his neck as he embraced her. "Do you remember, Rowena, what I said when I gave you this ring? I told you my mother wanted you to have it when I...I mean to say, that she knew you and I would...always be friends."_

_Rowena loosened herself and leaned to look at him. His green eyes were serious. He put a hand to her face, and she blushed, turning her eyes quickly to the ground._

_Why was she feeling shy?_

_"Whenever we might get separated, I will always find you," he said softly. "If you ever need help, I will find you."_

_"I know," Rowena whispered, as he pulled her close again and kissed her cheek. He dwelled there for a tense moment. Her heart was pounding and she felt nervous. Then, he let her go._

_"You should get to bed before the castle wakes."_

_"Can't you come?" Rowena pleaded. "It's lonely without you."_

_"You know that isn't proper anymore, Rowena," he replied. "We aren't children. Go on, and hurry." He looked down at her feet. "And wash those before you go bed."_

_They laughed, and Rowena took off running into the night._

Rowena tossed again in her bed, though she smiled at the memory. At that time, she hadn't really understood. He had wanted to kiss her. He had been trying to tell her they were betrothed. Yet he never did either. They saw each other less and less from that night on--until the end.

Rowena sighed and sat up. Sleep was not going to come. Tossing off the bedclothes, she wrapped a robe about her nightgown and decided to retreat to the library. A reading of _Joberknoll Journeys_ by Byrtwold the Boring would be the most likely route to sleep, she figured. So, Rowena slipped downstairs. The library was dark, illuminated only by faint light creeping through the small, high windows. Rowena startled. Someone was sitting in the library reading a book. His shoulders were too square to be her uncle's...

"Salazar?"

He stood up and set down his book. Rowena realized he must have never left after he walked her home.

"I...I've been reading," he explained. "I...I knew you were here, and I didn't want to leave."

He moved a little closer. "I told you I would find you. Do you remember?"

"Yes," Rowena answered, though the word caught in her throat. Her heart was racing.

"I just..." he came even closer. "I don't want to lose you again. I..."

Rowena fell into his arms. Salazar wrapped his hand softly behind her neck, catching her hair between his fingers. She remembered that night in the orchard, when he almost kissed her. This time, he was not going to hesitate. For a moment, they were still, and then they kissed. His mouth was warm, and her skin prickled, and she felt light in his arms, yielding. When they stopped to breathe, Salazar pulled away slowly, their lips peeling apart. Rowena remained still, her eyes closed.

"I love you," she whispered, then opened her eyes. "I didn't understand any of it, and I still don't understand it, but I never stopped loving you, Salazar." Her eyes welled with tears, and he surrounded her again with his arms.

"I was so weak," he said somberly. "So weak. I couldn't fight the curse. I loved him, Rowena. Please, forgive me..."

"I do," she cried, as he kissed her neck and face. "I do."

He found her mouth again, and they were lost in a long-awaited kiss.

--------A/N  
Thanks for all the reviews. Sorry it took so long. I was waiting on a beta read, but couldn't get around to it. Hope there are any horrible mistakes! Thanks for reading. 


End file.
